


you remind me of true love (when it's nowhere to be found)

by Veronica1986



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, F/F, Fluff, Idiots in Love, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Lesbian Sex, Lots of it, Past Abuse, Sex Toys, Sexual Tension, Smut, kinda of slow burn, more tags to be add
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-18
Updated: 2019-02-09
Packaged: 2019-09-22 07:54:45
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 28,805
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17055863
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Veronica1986/pseuds/Veronica1986
Summary: When Regina's curse is broken and along with it, Emma Swan's heart and trust, will they be able to walk through it all and rebuild their relationship? Will their love be strong enough to fix their mistakes?*** This fic is actually in HIATUS ***





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I was listening, for what was probably the hundredth time, the song Nowhere and watching the ep "In the name of the brother" when Cora and Regina are reunited and the way Regina reacts to her and everything else and how Emma was the only one who believed her when the phrase "You remind me of true love (when it's nowhere to be found)" finally hit me. 
> 
> This song is from East of Eli, for who doesn't know, the band of Chyler's (my baby Alex Danvers from Supergirl) husband. 
> 
> Thank you so much Jewel for keeping up with me and helping me with this story, and for your amazing support with this story. 
> 
> I will try to update weekly, I still don't have a specific day to this. 
> 
> And finally, I do hope you guys enjoy this fic.

Emma is lying on the floor of the underground cell of the refuge that Aurora and Mulan had taken her and Mary Margaret. Fucking Mulan; Like Mulan the strong, independent, eastern warrior who led an army and defeated an evil general.

Emma's thoughts and emotions were spinning in her head like a black hole in space. Her life had turned upside down in less than 24 hours and she still hadn't had time to settle everything.

All her life she searched for her parents and wondered why they had abandoned her at the edge of a road immediately after she was born. Then one night, her ten-year-old son shows up at her door, insisting that she is the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming and a lot of things that at first seemed crazy, but in the end were all true.

Her parents _were,_ in fact, Snow White and Prince Charming. The woman for whom she was irrevocably in love with was none other than Evil Queen, the archenemy of her parents, the other mother of her son. Life had a way of playing with Emma Swan.

Her thoughts automatically carried her to Regina, who was now alone in Storybrooke and at the mercy of all those people who hated her, including many that wanted her dead. Emma caught herself thinking about how things would be between the brunette and Henry now that she wasn't there. She also wondered whether or not David had taken Regina back to the cell to keep her safe, away from the fury of the inhabitants of the small town. This thought made her heart clench in fear. She had just saved Regina from a small riot led by Whale, and then from a wraith brought by Gold - no, his real name was Rumplestiltskin - to kill her and Emma didn't know if she wanted to find out why or how he had managed to bring that thing to Storybrooke in the first place.

She closed her eyes tightly and her head hit the wall with a low thud. Emma took a deep breath and felt the tears burning behind her eyelids. Had Regina simply used her all this time? Every night they spent together at the mansion, whispering secrets and desires, allowing themselves to be led by the almost palpable desire between them. Every time, she lowered her guard to the brunette and became vulnerable in her presence. The few things Regina shared with her, were always so reserved. _"Believe me, Emma, once you really know everything about me, you're going to hate me and what you think we have will be lost forever."_ Regina's words echoed in her mind and Emma knew she must be hating the brunette; she should blame her for making her grow away from her parents and face terrible things in her childhood and adolescence, for all the innocents she killed. _Graham._ When he died, she didn't want to believe Henry, but now she wasn't so sure that Regina wasn't responsible for the man's death.

The soft sound of footsteps roused Emma from her thoughts and she sat upright, looking around in the darkness as she held Mary Margaret's head protectively in her lap. The woman hadn't awakened since Mulan hit her, and Emma was starting to worry. A movement in the darkness made Emma bring her hand to her waist just to remember that she wasn't with her gun anymore. "Who's there?"

A woman stepped out of the shadows and walked slowly toward Emma. She wore a blue dress with a sort of shawl on top, and her hair was tied with a side braid. She appeared to be in her sixties, and something in her eyes made Emma's heart beat faster. They seemed so familiar but yet so different at the same time.

"Can I take a look at her for you?" The woman's voice was calm and composed. It sent shivers down Emma's spine, but not enough to make her want to run away. There was something about that woman. "It's been a while since you arrived here and she's still unconscious..."

"Uh." Emma looked at Mary Margaret and considered the woman in front of her for a moment. She was right. The woman had been in her lap for some time - Emma couldn't bring herself to say the word, not yet - she was out of touch. "Sure."

The woman crouched beside them and Emma stood up, suddenly feeling overwhelmed by the woman's closeness. She paced back and forth while Mary Margaret was "examined", and tried to gather her thoughts regarding where they were. It was the Enchanted Forest of Henry's book, but that seemed a very private point Emma couldn't recognize. "Where are we? What place is this?"

"A small island our kidnappers consider a haven."

"Haven? Of what?" Emma looked confused. "By the way, will she be okay?" She tilted her chin toward Mary Margaret.

"Yes, she'll be fine." The woman turned to look at her as Emma walked through the small cell. "The world is dangerous, what's left of it at least."

"They can't keep us here." Emma turned to face the woman. "I don't know about you, but we didn't do anything wrong."

"Me neither." The woman shrugged lightly.

"Then why are you here?"

"I'm here because of something my daughter did." She averted her gaze and though the woman looked sad somehow, Emma felt something inside her shake. "The curse that devastated this kingdom..." She took a deep breath. "It was she who casted it."

"Regina? Are you Regina's mother?" Emma couldn't hide the surprise in her voice and expression, but at the same time an anger began to bubble up in her chest.

"No need to be afraid of me." The woman smiled.

_If only she knew_ , Emma thought.

"You're from there, aren't you?"

Something in the woman's eyes made Emma shiver. She would do whatever it takes to keep her away from Regina, or Henry. The little Regina had shared with her during the nights they spent together, Emma knew that the woman was responsible for much of the reason Regina had casted the curse. "Are you the woman who murdered the man Regina loved before her so she married a king?"

A flash of surprise and something else crossed the woman's gaze, but before Emma could identify what it was, she had already slipped a perfect mask into her expression.

"Emma!" Snow's voice made her turn instinctively, but she was looking at the woman in front of her and for the first time Emma saw her friend with something resembling fear in her features. "No."

"Snow, I'm so relieved you woke up."

"As evil as you think Regina is," Snow ignored the woman and took Emma's hands, pulling her away from her. "That woman is worse."

"I know." Emma stared at Snow. Her jaw worked furiously under her skin. "And I don't think Regina is evil."

The woman watched them both in silence and raised an eyebrow at Emma’s admission. Something in the way she said it made Cora want to shoot, and suddenly she was very interested in the blonde in front of her.

"Ah, Snow." The woman approached them and Snow turned to face her, placing Emma behind her, opening her arms protectively, as if she were a helpless little girl. "Dear Snow, please."

Emma thought of Snow's gesture and didn't know how to feel at the moment. Throughout her life she wanted someone to take care of her, to protect her from the evils she went through, but every time she was forced to face it all by herself. To learn to protect herself one way or the other.

"I don't know what Regina told you, but it's not true."

"Are you saying Regina lied about _you_ killing the man she loved?" Emma hissed behind Snow. "Are you saying you never did _anything_ to make Regina the woman she became?"

"Emma..." Snow's voice came as a warning and Emma realized that there was also a twinge of confusion in her voice. It was no secret to anyone that Emma defended Regina. For God's sake! She had just saved her life twice, and that was precisely why they were trapped in that place. The problem is that, as always, Emma was talking too much. Not only for Snow, but also to Regina's mother and this could have bad consequences.

Emma didn't have time to respond, nor did Cora. A rope was thrown through the ceiling of the underground cell and Emma and Snow had to climb out.

In a short time, they were on the surface again and were taken to what resembled a trailer, though made of wood and lacking wheels. Emma looked around as the guy who had brought them entered the trailer.

She was desperately trying to ignore Snow and her side glances. Emma knew the woman was holding back from asking how she seemed to know so much about Regina's past. Snow knew that if she pressed Emma now, she would just push her away.

Almost a week. This was the time they were trapped in this world and Emma couldn't take it anymore. She needed to find a way home. For her son. For Regina.

A few minutes passed in an uncomfortable silence as Snow's expression changed - from one who is preparing to ask a series of questions she will not like the answer - to that of someone who is in disbelief of what they are seeing with their eyes. Like Emma, for instance, when she saw the dragon under the library in Storybrooke.

"Lancelot?"

Emma turned at the sound of Snow's voice and noticed a man, a knight, emerging from the "trailer" and looking at the woman in front of him wearing the same expression.

"Lancelot? Seriously? Like King Arthur, Lancelot? One of the Round Table?"

But Snow didn't answer her. Instead, she ran to the man and hugged him tight.

"If I knew you were Mulan's prisoner..."

Emma was deep in thought again. Would she ever get used to the idea that all those characters she grew up watching in cartoons or reading in books were real? That apparently many of them were connected to her life in some way? Probably not.

She was taken from her thoughts as Snow touched her shoulder, indicating that she would follow them. Minutes later, they were in front of a table with various foods, but few that seemed to appealing Emma. _What would she not give for a grilled cheese?_

Lancelot set a bowl of wood on the table and Emma wrinkled her nose at the food presented to her.

"What the hell is this?"

"This is a chimera." Lancelot answered as he sat down beside Emma. "One part lion, one part snake and one part goat."

"I pass." Emma made a face and opted for things she knew.

"I don't understand. They said that this land no longer existed." Snow shifted on the bench to look at the man. "How did you all escape the curse?"

As they talked about kingdoms and curses and how difficult it had been to find that haven, Emma concentrated on finding things she could eat. There were different fruits and what looked like vegetables and she wondered if any of them could cause some kind of intoxication or hallucination. She remembered vaguely having read about these things and watched a few movies, but her thoughts kept returning to Storybrooke. She needed to find a way out.

"Can you help us find a portal?"

It caught Emma's attention and she turned to look at Snow curiously.

"There are no more portals left."

"I might know of one."

Something in the way Lancelot bent down made the hairs on Emma's arms and neck rise. Something was wrong, but she could not say exactly what.

"Do you?" She ended up asking before she could stop herself.

"Where?" Lancelot asked and something in his tone made Emma move uncomfortably.

"Cora's near. I don't feel comfortable voicing my plans and putting everything at risk." Snow shook her head. "She's powerful."

"No more. The curse stripped her of her powers."

"I'd rather not risk it."

Emma was relieved to see that Snow wouldn't divulge her plans so easily, and was even more relieved when Lancelot agreed to let them go to find such a portal. Though, while still fascinated by the idea of meeting Mulan, she didn't exactly feel excited to have the warrior accompanying them on this journey. Even more so if Aurora came along. She had noticed something in the way Mulan looked at the princess and the fact that she seemed to be always wanting to protect her, but Emma wasn't patient enough to deal with Aurora at the moment. She understood that the girl was suffering from losing the man she loved and everything, but honestly, it wasn't their fault what had happened.

Moments later, they were standing in front of a small trunk choosing their weapons. Emma chose to take a short sword and put it in her boot. "Where's my gun?" This was something she was familiar with, and as she felt the metal against her palm, she felt relief. It was something that grounded her with the life she knew and who she was.

"Is it magic?" Mulan asked turning the gun in her hand. Emma would have found it cute had it not been for the situation they were in.

"Depends on who's pulling the trigger." She took the gun back and put it on her waist as she watched Snow picking up a huge bow and a quiver with arrows.

After a few minutes passed, they were leaving. Mulan went further ahead, while Emma stayed behind in hopes to find out what Mary Margaret's plan was.

"Just follow my lead. Do as I say and follow the plan."

“What's the plan?" Emma asked impatiently.

"The wardrobe."

"Wardrobe? The wardrobe?" Emma took a few seconds to understand what Mary Margaret was saying and when she finally understood, she didn't know how to feel about it. "Like, the wardrobe that sent little baby me to Maine? You think it could get us back to Storybrooke?" Emma felt a surge of hope invade her chest.

"I hope so. First we have to see if it survived the curse, and how much of it is left."

"Where is it?"

"My place. You wanna see where you're from, Emma?"

_Hell, no!_ Emma wanted to scream. She didn't want a fucking tour through the Enchanted Forest and see where she might have grown up and lived a completely different life, where she might have known the love of her parents and wouldn't have grown up alone. The place where she would have had a _family_. She didn't want to go to the place where Regina once lived and went through horrible things because Cora was a selfish bitch and her mother didn't know how to keep a secret. But apparently, that was the only way back home, so she just looked at the woman beside her and, without saying anything else, followed her.

The plan was to camp in a clearing at night to avoid encountering an ogre, and in the morning, they would proceed to the castle.

Snow and Mulan went out to fetch wood for the bonfire, water, and other things they might need to spend the night, leaving Emma alone in the clearing. She took advantage of the moment of peace and sat on the grass, looking ahead and getting lost in thought once more.

_Regina_ _shuddered at Emma's touch._ _Her back was extremely sensitive if touched gently, but of course almost no one knew this since practically none of her former lovers cared about her pleasure, or her in general, to discover what she liked or not._ _Emma, on the other hand, seemed to know everything she liked without her needing to say anything._ _"Emma."_ _Regina panted as the blonde planted a soft kiss on her exposed shoulder._

_"Yes?"_ _Emma murmured with her eyes closed._ _The feel of Regina's skin against hers made her head swim with pleasure._

_"Fuck me already, Dear."_ _Regina purred and that alone_ _could make Emma come._ _She would never tire of how the brunette could turn her into a wet mess with so little._

_Emma felt like the luckiest woman in the world whenever she was alone with Regina because the woman changed completely in the stolen hours they spent together some nights during the week._ _"Not yet, Your Majesty."_ _Emma pressed another kiss on the brunette's shoulder and slid a hand to_ _cup her breast, stroking her thumb gently over the sensitive peak, moaning at the feeling of the hardening nub under her touch._ _"You're not ready yet and I don't want you to feel any pain. We've already established that."_

_Regina offered an impatient huff, but she couldn't help the smile on her lips or the warmth in her heart at the blonde's words._ _Emma was undoubtedly the most caring lover she had ever had in her life._ _She arched her back, pressing her body against Emma's, surrendering to the sensations she caused._ _She hummed content with the feel of Emma's hands sliding gently down her skin, taking her sweet time to prepare her for what she knew would be another unforgettable night._ _Emma spread kisses over her skin and her eyes always looked for Regina's as if to confirm that what she was doing was okay._

_Emma was probably the only person in the world whom Regina - consciously or not - would give some kind of control over her, especially in such an intimate way._ _She didn't know what would happen between them and was afraid to think about it._ _She was afraid to believe that anything more could happen between them beyond these intimate nights they shared._

_A low moan escaped Regina's lips as Emma's tongue touched her clit and she closed her eyes, enjoying the sensation._ _With a fondness she rarely_ _showed, Regina slid her fingers into Emma's hair and pressed her head against her core._ _"Yes, Emma!"_ _She felt the blonde smile against her innermost part and scraped her fingers gently on the back of Emma's neck._ _Regina knew that this smile wasn't a way for the blonde to feel superior, but a happiness that spread in her chest for receiving such encouragement from Regina._

_In front of everyone in the Storybrooke, Emma was strong, independent, fearless, the Savior._ _She pushed all Regina's buttons and daring to cross her path, but when they were alone in the dark protection of_ _the queen's_ _bedroom, Emma lowered her walls and let Regina see all her fears and vulnerabilities._ _She had been doing this from the moment they met and she just couldn't stop herself._

Emma was taken from her thoughts at the sound of voices near where she was and she knew it was Mary Margaret and Mulan. She got up and ran toward the voices to see what was happening. When she saw the two women in a fight, a dagger in Mulan's hand, without much thought, she fired her gun, startling the other women.

"Emma, what are you doing?" Mary Margaret looked at her with wide eyes and an disbelieving look.

"Protecting you. Release the weapon." She ordered Mulan, who held a dagger in her hands. Only then did she notice Aurora. The princess sat on the grass and looked at her in confusion and panic.

"Do you have any idea what you did?" Mary Margaret hissed. She looked angry and frightened at the same time, and Emma’s thoughts went immediately to the mothers of foster homes she had spent her childhood in. They looked at her that way whenever she did something wrong and depending on the home, she would get punished.

Before anyone could say anything, a roar echoed in the forest and she turned in awe. "Ogres?"

"Run!" Mary Margaret screamed, and they fired into the forest. "Split it up."

Emma ran with her mother to one side while Aurora and Mulan went to other in hopes of misleading the ogre, but as they ran Emma tripped on a log and fell. In a few minutes, the creature was practically hovering over her. Instinctively, Emma reached for her gun, which had fallen on the grass, but before she could fire the ogre took the gun from her hand and kneaded it, throwing it away. The creature roared, emanating a smell that made Emma nauseous. It looked like a mixture of decomposed bodies mixed with manholes of large cities. _"It's my end,"_ Emma thought.

A whistle caught the creature's attention, and she widened her eyes as she saw Mary Margaret standing a few feet away. "Stay away from my daughter." Without taking her eyes off the ogre, the short-haired brunette reached an arrow in the quiver hanging on her back and positioned it in the bow, aiming and shooting straight into the creature's eye, causing it to fall with a shout and a loud thud.

"When was the last time you shot an arrow?" Emma asked as she approached Mary Margaret. Although she was no longer a defenseless child and still had very confused feelings about all the things she had discovered last week and how her life had changed upside down, Emma suddenly felt safe. Knowing she could count with the woman to have her back no matter what happened was a great relief, but knowing that her mother was out there looking at her was a sensation she was still experiencing.

After the attack they decided to continue their journey to the castle Snow lived before the curse and when they arrived there and found everything in rubble Emma wasn't sure how to feel. She had no connection to the place. All that, all those stuffed animals, all that princesseness stuff... that wasn't her. It would never be. Not because she didn't grow up there, but because Emma was sure that even if she had grown up in the Enchanted Forest, she would never be the princess her parents had expected. She would end up being only a disappointment to them when, instead of preparing for balls and marriage she would want to practice sword and most likely become a knight instead of finding a husband and all that true love nonsense. The only connection she had with the place came from Henry's book. She touched the wardrobe quickly and walked to the balcony, from what Emma was almost sure, would be her bedroom. The view was simply breathtaking, even at night.

"I thought I'd never see this place again." Mary Margaret's voice took her out of her thoughts and she stepped out of the balcony, into the room once more. "It was your nursery."

"I lived here?"

" You never even got to spend a night."

The way Mary Margareth said it almost made Emma cringe. " This is the life I wanted you to have. I was going to teach you how to walk in here, how to talk, how to dress for your first ball."

There it was. Emma took a deep breath and decided not to say anything. She knew that trying to put some sense into the woman now would only make an unnecessary argument, and probably both would say things they would regret right away. Besides, Emma wasn't necessarily dying to start any kind of conversation with the woman in front of her after defending Regina and accusing Cora of being part responsible for who Regina became. She knew that as soon as she got the first chance Mary Margareth - Emma still couldn't wrap her mind to the fact that her mother was Snow White so it was easier to think of her as Mary Margareth - would ask questions about how Emma knew so much about Regina's past.

"We never got to be a family." Mary Margareth sighed and that was enough for Emma to break her resolve to say nothing.

"We have a family in Storybrooke. And right now, they need us to get back there." She pulled on her jacket again and turned to the wardrobe. "We need to go back. Henry needs us. Reg-" She broke off before she said too much, but from Mary Margareth's look she knew the woman had noticed her slip.

"We're going to have to carry this to the island." Miraculously the short-haired brunette let Emma's slip pass.

"And how are we going to do this?"

"With the help of an old friend." Lancelot's voice made the two of them turn to the door.

Immediately Emma felt the hairs on the back of her neck rise and her body stiffen. Something was wrong. Why Mulan wasn't with him?

"What are you doing here?"

"I heard about the ogre's attack and I came to check if you were all right." He stopped beside them. "So, this is it the portal you were after. "

As Mary Margareth explained to Lancelot about how the wardrobe was made by Geppetto, Emma took the opportunity to study the man in front of them.

"A portal this powerful there must be another way to recharge it."

"Why are you so interested in the wardrobe?" Snow asked and Emma knew she was suspicious of something, too.

"I just want you to go back to your husband." He looked at Emma and smiled. "and for your son, Henry, they must miss you."

Snow bowed slightly and turned to Emma with a smile, and in the next moment she had her sword pointed at the knight. "Stay away from him, Emma. He is not who he says he is."

"I already knew that." Emma snorted. "But if he's not your friend, who the hell is he?"

"You talked about Henry to one person only."

"Cora." Emma's eyes widened. ' _There's no way to get worse._ _How am I going to defeat one of the most powerful witches?'_ Emma thought as she watched Lancelot turn into Cora. _Cool trick,_ Emma thought as the woman was surrounded by a purple smoke. Emma stiffened when she heard Cora tell them that Lancelot was dead and that she had been posing as him for a long time. The next moment Mary Margareth was stuck against the wall with magic. Emma moved to attack, out of instinct, but with a simple gesture of her hand, Cora threw her away.

"I'm looking for a way out of here a long time ago." Cora said walking towards Mary Margareth. "I never thought you would be the one to _help_ me _._ "

"Why are you doing this?"

"I want to see my daughter. It's been a long time, God knows what that ungrateful girl is doing without me to guide her. And I would love to meet my grandson, Henry."

Emma felt the blood ran cold in her veins at the thought of this woman next to Regina again, or Henry. She couldn't let her get to Storybrooke. She remembered something in her pocket and took advantage of Cora's distraction to set the wardrobe on fire. At that moment Emma was absolutely certain, she wouldn't let anyone hurt Regina again. Even if she had to get stuck in the Enchanted Forest and never see her again. At least she and Henry would be safe.

When Cora prepared to attack Emma, Mulan appeared and saved her, using her sword to keep the woman from hitting her with her magic. "We're not done yet." Cora said, and then disappeared in a purple smoke.

"Are you alright?" Emma asked when she finally got to her feet with Aurora's help.

"You saved me."

"Yes, well." Emma turned around looking around. "Where is she?"

"Gone."

"Just like our ride home." Emma stared at what was left of the wardrobe as it was consumed by the fire until Mulan's voice took her out of her thoughts. The warrior was visibly upset that she hadn't noticed before that she had been deceived and that she had put the lives of hundreds of people in danger. Emma felt sympathy for the woman and wished there was something she could say, but there was none. Emma didn't know that world or those people.

"Cora is still there, we need to find her, we need to defend what's left of the kingdom." Mulan said.

"And who's going to lead us, you?" The disdain in Aurora's voice made Emma want to slap the girl. How could she be so cruel? Mulan had lost her best friend and was also suffering for it, but more than that, she blamed herself for putting so many people's lives in danger by not realizing that Cora had been among them for so long.

"No. Her." Mulan replied firmly, turning to face Mary Margareth.

"I'm honored." The short-haired brunette took her hand by the handle of the sword at her waist. "But Emma and I still have to find a way to get back home."

"We'll help you. We'll find a way, won't we?" Mulan answered and turned to Aurora.

"Yes. Perhaps it'll help me channel my anger." The princess looked apologetic at Mary Margareth.

"Let's go." Mulan said as he led them out of the castle.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay but holidays are kinda crazy and we got a little busy. 
> 
> I'll be updating this fic weekly. 
> 
> Hope you guys enjoy and let me know what you think.

Regina was in Henry's room, sitting on his bed and holding his pillow against her chest. His childlike scent invading her senses as tears streamed down her face without her being able (or wanting) to stop them. It had all happened too fast, in the last hours, and she hadn't had time to breathe yet.

Emma had confessed that she loved her the final night they had been together, and Regina panicked. No one could love her. She wasn't loveable. Most importantly, _Emma_ couldn't love her. Not now, let alone when she found out who she really was. Every unforgivable thing she had done in her past still haunted her in the present. In the midst of her panic, she finally decided to resort to what she knew best: she was going to give Emma her famous apple turnover. The blonde would then fall into an eternal sleep, preserved in her vault forever. Her curse would remain unbroken, and her relationship with Henry would eventually return to normal... Surely, all this was a better alternative to discovering what those three words might entail.

What she hadn’t expected, however, was for Emma to be stupid enough to eat the turnover as soon as she got to Snow White's house with Henry there. What she expected even less was to receive a call from her son, crying, desperate, but still resorting to her out of all people. _"Henry-" she swallowed hard at the lump in her throat._ "Henry, I'm sorry, for everything." She closed her eyes tightly, trying to prevent more tears from streaming down her face at the voice of her son, begging her to **do something, anything**. "There's nothing I can do, Henry. You know the only thing that can break a curse is true love kiss. It has to be you, my prince. I can't help Emma now."

As soon as the curse was broken, she knew. Regina felt the warm wave ripping through the town and she knew that Henry had succeeded. She waited, sitting in her room for a few moments, but nothing more happened. Her magic did not return, Emma did not appear at her door yelling at her and demanding answers, they didn't return to the Enchanted Forest.

Regina closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to calm her sobs and put her thoughts in order, but the image of Emma touching her arm and then the hat working, kept coming back in her mind. As the words: _She is not dying._ How could Emma look at her with any feeling other than hatred even after she discovered that she was who Henry said? How could Emma have saved her life after discovering the truth?

Emma, who lowered her walls instantly to her and without asking or demanded, made Regina do the same, simply because Emma made her want to open up and talk about her greatest traumas. Because, somehow, she knew she could trust Emma, and because the darkness in her room brought security enough for them to speak openly about their past, even if Regina did so using creative truth.

Every night she and Emma spent together the feeling grew in her heart and it frightened Regina like few things were capable. What started as a mere fun, a game, a way to control Emma and prevent the blonde from putting the work of her life to waste, became something much stronger, much truer, that Regina still refused to acknowledge. _"True love, the only magic powerful enough to transcend realms."_ The phrase echoed in Regina's mind and she couldn't forget her reaction when Emma touched her arm and the portal opened.

Her thoughts were interrupted by loud knocking on her door and it was no surprise to find Charming there. With that superior air, as if he were something more than a son of a shepherd. She felt the blood boil in her veins, remembering when he threatened her, as soon as Snow and Emma disappeared through the portal and how she had trapped him against the wall. Henry appearing before she could do anything that she could regret later. Not killing the prince, but what it would entail in her relationship with Henry, and with Emma if she could get back to Storybrooke.

She wanted to snap her fingers and crush his neck and end the superiority he thought he had, but Regina knew deep down, all this hatred she was feeling at the moment was because she didn't have her son with her and because she didn't know if Emma was dead or alive. In another time she would have been relieved to finally get rid of the blonde, but now all she wanted was to bring her back and Regina didn't know how. It was making her more frustrated than she could imagine.

"Right now, the only thing keeping you alive is that Henry wishes it." It drew her attention to what Charming was saying, and she knew her expression had softened.

"It's the hat that pulled your loved ones away."

"Well, where did you get it?" Charming followed her into the living room.

"Maybe you should be less concerned with hats and more concerned with taking care of my son."

"Because you took such great care of him."

"I will not listen to child care lectures from a man who put his daughter in a box and shipped her to Maine without even thinking about what could happen to her." Regina hissed.

"Because you casted a curse!"

"I did not make you and your insufferable wife put Emma in a wardrobe and send her to God knows where!" Regina shouted. "You could have stayed with her, but you preferred to believe what Rumplestiltskin said!"

"It was the only way to break your curse! Who would guarantee Emma would be safe here?"

"I might hate your insufferable wife for what she did to me, but I've never hurt a child." Regina hissed. "Not even in my worst days as the Evil Queen, and even though Emma represented a great danger to my curse, I'm sure she'd be safer here than in the outside world."

"You talk like you know something..."

"I don't know anything." Regina answered quickly. "But you don't have to be too smart to imagine what kind of things that can happen to a child with no one to look after in a world like this. I think even you can imagine a thing or two, Charming."

"Okay, listen." He walked around the table and stood before her. "I need my family, there's magic here now, there have to be ways to follow them."

"Follow them where? Into a sucking airless void?" Regina stepped into Charming's personal space. "And your luck that my magic is not working, because, as I said, you would have turned ashes by now."

"Ah, frustrated, are we?"

God, Regina wanted to make that smile disappear from his face! Her blood boiled in her veins and she took a deep breath to no to do something stupid. She needed her magic back because only then she could have Henry back, and maybe, find a way to bring Emma back.

"Right now, I don't have magic and I don't have my son, but when I get one, I get the other." Regina hissed. "And in your place, I wouldn't want to be around when that happens."

"If you have to use magic to keep your son, you don't really have him."

Regina stared at Charming for a few moments until the man finally gave up and left, slamming the door behind him. She had no doubt, if she had her magic working perfectly the inside of her house would be in pieces now.

Instead of sitting and crying as she had done the night before, Regina decided that the time to suffer for things she couldn't control or didn't know how to repair was over. She needed to make her magic work again because only then would she get her son back and with some luck, she would be able to bring Emma back too. Regina picked up a candle and set it on her desk in the living room. Her frustration grew with each second as she tried to ignite the flame and nothing more than a flicker happened. After ten minutes she knew she would have no choice. She would need the spell book Rumple had given to her mother.

Regina went to the front door of her house and looked carefully around, making sure no angry citizen was lurking just waiting for the best time to catch her. When she was satisfied, she left quickly and headed to the place where her car was parked, but before she could reach it, Archie's voice interrupted her. She took a deep breath and waited to hear what he had to say.

"Regina. I thought you might want to talk." He smiled gently and there was no judgment in his tone or posture and this irritated her. She couldn't handle this kind of thing. She was accustomed with looks judging every move she made or everything she said, but Archie, like Emma, never did.

"Oh, right, the conscience thing."

"It's what I do."

"I'm not in the mood." She answered and opened the door of her car.

"It's too bad," He walked towards her. "'Cause I think talking about your pain might be very helpful. Might help you learn who you truly are."

"I know who I am and who I will always be." Regina tried to force her voice not to shake, but she hated it anyway, it seemed small and broken. Her pain was written all over her face and she knew that Archie could see through her mask and it made her furious. All she didn't need now was someone else who could see her weaknesses. Without further ado, she got into the car and headed for Rumple's shop.

Regina looked around and felt a wave of relief when she saw that there was no one in the store. She immediately started looking through the books that were in view, hoping her mother's book was around and she didn't have to ask Rumplestiltskin because it could lead to a deal and she really wasn't in the mood for it. But luck wasn't something that was part of her life, and soon Rumple's voice invaded her ears.

"The library's beneath the clock tower. You closed it, remember? When you still had power." How Regina wanted to smash that Imp's face against those glass shelves. Part of the blame for the things that happened in her life were his. That damn treacherous Imp.

"I need the book. I need to get my son back." She ignored him and went straight to the point that had brought her there.

"Is it just your son who you want back or wants to find a way to bring your precious Miss Swan back from the Enchanted Forest? Shall I remind you that bringing your dear Miss Swan back her mother comes along?"

"I don't know what you're talking about, Imp!"

"Oh, because I think you know very well." He turned to her and looked at her with that arrogant, superior air. A victorious smile playing on his lips. "The others might be asleep, under your curse and living miserable lives, but they are not blind, you know?" Rumple walked through the store without turning to look at her. "You and Miss Swan were not as discreet as you think."

Regina stared at him in silence. Her jaw working under her skin as she registered his words and tried not to show any emotion. Of course, that Imp would have noticed something, but by the way he was talking, he wasn't the only one and Regina wondered who else might know about her and Emma's involvement and what it would entail now that the curse was broken. If this came to Charming or Henry then it would all be lost. She was dead the next moment Charming found out, and if she didn't die, Henry would certainly hate her even more.

"Give me the book."

"Do you really need the smell of the written word to get the magic flowing again, love? Maybe if you relaxed, it would just happen."

" I don't have time. It worked once. I know I can do it." She hated how she looked like that desperate girl, so many years ago, but she couldn't stay all day there in that game. "I just... I just need a shortcut back."

"Well, I do not have time either. Leave. Please."

With that Regina smirked. Did that Imp really think that that 'deal' they made before the curse was casted would still work? "Well How about that? Your 'pleases' have lost their punch."

"Well, the fact remains. Jump-starting your magic is not in my best interests."

"You know what else isn't in your best interest? Having everyone know the Enchanted Forest still exists, and that you and I are keeping this little secret." Regina smiled victoriously at his look. "You're up to something, and it doesn't involve going back home." She slid her hand over a leather bag that was on one of the store counters and when she tried to open it, he closed it abruptly and then her mother's book appeared in his hands. Regina smiled and filled that information for another moment. She had hit a nerve. As soon as she recovered her magic and her son, she would try to find out what Rumple was up to and how much it would affect her.

"Careful, dearie. These are straight-up spells. Rough on the system."

"I don't care if they turn me green. I'm getting my son back." She took the book and turned to leave the store.

"Oh my..." Rumple chuckled.

"What?" She turned angrily.

"Holding this book like this... I told you once you didn't look like her, but now... Now I can see it."

That struck Regina deeper than anything else. Throughout her life her greatest fear was that one day she would be like her mother, and apparently her greatest fear had come true. She knew that Rumple had noticed the change in her expression and how it had shaken her. Not trusting her voice for a sassy response, she just turned and left the store.

Regina drove to the town hall and went to the backyard where her beloved apple tree was. She sat down on the bench just below and held the book in front of her. Immediately the memory of when Emma was there cutting through her apple tree invaded her mind. Emma made her furious most of the time, but she was the only person in town who made her feel alive as she hadn't felt for a long time. Emma challenged her and pushed her buttons all the way around her, but she was the only person who seemed to care enough about her either.

_"What the hell do you think you're doing?" She stormed from her office toward the tree as soon as she saw what the blonde was doing. The audacity of that insufferable woman!_

_"Picking apples." Emma smiled still holding the chainsaw._

_Regina felt her panties soaking wet with the attitude and fierce look that the blonde addressed to her and there was nothing she could do to stop what came next. Before she could realize what was happening, Emma's lips were crashing against her lips in a furious kiss and she knew she should have pushed her, but her body seemed to have something else in mind and instead her hands found Emma's arms and pulled her closer. A moan escaped her lips as the blonde's hands slid down her ass and she propelled her upward, causing Regina to wrap her legs around her waist and the next moment her back hit the apple tree. "Are you going to take me against a tree, Miss Swan? Even to you, that's a little too rude."_

_"Oh, sorry, I didn't know Your Majesty was delicate." Emma smirked and before Regina could answer she took her in another fierce kiss. "I bet I'll find your panties drenched if I put my hand there."_

_"Are you just going to talk or will you do something, Miss Swan?" Regina raised an eyebrow. Her eyes rolled to the back of her head as Emma's fingers slid down her ass to her panties, and with a shrewdness that only those who had done it at other times, slipped through her wet, pulsating core. A louder moan escaped her lips as Emma skillfully slid two fingers into her core._

_"God, Regina." Emma breathed against her lips. "You're soaked." Her fingers slid slowly into the mayor's tight channel and her eyes closed involuntarily, rolling to the back of her head with the delicious sensation of the brunette warm, wet walls wrapping around her fingers._

_When Emma opened her eyes again, they glowed in a shade of green that reminded Regina of summer afternoons on the hill of her house in the Enchanted Forest. Hot and free. There was a fury in Emma's eyes, but there was also a pure desire and something else she didn't want to acknowledge yet. The blonde's other hand was still on her thigh, holding her firmly in place against the tree, and Regina looked down at Emma's arms, unable to look into her eyes any longer in fear of what she might find in them. "Harder, Miss Swan. I'm not a college girl having her first time."_

_"I was really wondering if you liked rough." Emma breathed in and increased her thrusts as her lips met the mayor's in another urgent kiss._

Regina shook her head. Her panties were soaked with this memory, but that wasn't the time to think about things like these. She needed to make her magic work to have her son and Emma back.

Regina closed her eyes and took a deep breath before finally opening the book and letting the words activate her dormant powers. It didn't take long and she felt her magic invading her veins and vibrating inside her. When she opened her eyes, Regina knew they were shining in the purple she hadn't seen in a long time. "Now it's time to take my son back and then I can think of a way to bring Emma back." She smiled and headed for the entrance of the town hall, where the people of Storybrooke were gathering.

She stopped in front of the doors where the meetings were hosted and a smile spread on her lips as she managed to open them using her magic. "My... What a nice turnout." A wave of satisfaction spread through her body as she saw the fear on the faces of all those people. The crowd made room for her and Regina noticed Red at one end. The way she looked at her made a wave of confidence travel through her body and she finally walked between them. "No need for a fuss. It's just little old me."

When she reached the other end, Archie emerged from the crowd and tried to speak some sense in her, but she just stretched out her hand and sent him flying to the floor. The next moment Grump came running toward her, but she also sent him flying against the other inhabitants. Granny immediately positioned herself and fired at her with her beast. Regina caught the arrow in the air and smiled. Her eyes flashed purple and an almost maniac smile spread across her lips, instantly turning the arrow into flames. "How sweet."

Surprisingly, Red was the one who stepped out of the crowd to challenge her. She had always liked the wolf. Even in the Enchanted Forest, when she was Snow White's faithful squire. Regina always saw something in the wolf's eyes. Besides what that useless friend of hers was capable of noticing. Red was loyal and brave and fierce. She wasn't afraid to say what she thought or even of her opponents. Besides being very, very beautiful. There was a time when Regina contemplated corrupting and seducing her, only to see Snow White squirming, but in the end, she ended up letting the idea go.

Henry's voice pulled her from her thoughts, and she finally turned her eyes from the wolf to her son who made his way among the townspeople. "Me... She wants me. Okay, I'll come with you. Just leave them alone."

She looked at the boy standing in front of her and let her expression soften for a moment. Regina walked over to him and caressed his face. "That's my boy." She put her arm around his shoulders and directed him toward the exit. Regina could feel Red's eyes burning on her as she passed and this sent shivers down her body. If it was another time, she would certainly go after the wolf later, and no doubt she would seduce her, but she had other priorities now. Her son was going home with her and finally she could think of a way to bring Emma back. _Emma_. The name made her heart squeeze. There was so much at stake and yet one of the things she wanted most was the blonde back. Even if Emma hated her or they could never have what they had before the curse had broken again.

The way home was quiet, and as they arrived, Henry ran to his room.

"Don't fight it, honey. You'll get a splinter." Regina sighed as she manipulated the branches of the tree to pick up Henry. The frustration that spread through her chest was almost too much to bear. She brought the boy inside and they sat on his bed.

"How long am I in prison? Until I grow up?"

"Henry, I rescued you because I love you."

"So, I'm a prisoner because you love me. That's not fair."

Frustration and anger were spreading through her chest in a way Regina couldn't control. Why couldn't Henry understand that all she wanted was for him to stay with her? That he was the most precious thing in her life? That the last ten years of her life only made sense because of him? Why couldn't he _choose her?_ "You know where I come from. That was really not fair. Of all the places I've seen, this is the fairest of them all."

"You ruined lives. You sent away Mary Margaret and Emma."

"That was an accident, Henry." Regina looked at her hands. She couldn't face her son while talking about Emma because she was afraid he would notice something. "I did not plan to bring that wraith here, much less send Miss Swan into a vacuum. I did not want-" Her voice cracked and she just prayed that Henry hadn't noticed.

"The way you treated me wasn't an accident." If Henry had noticed something in her voice, he didn't mention it. Instead he switched to another subject that hurt her equally. "You made it so no one believed me. You made me feel like I was crazy."

"Henry, I-"

"No, I don't want to hear your lies." He looked into her eyes and Regina felt her heart tighten. "I don't want anything that comes from you. I don't want to be like you." He got up and left.

Those words struck Regina even more deeply than the Rumplestiltskin's words a few hours earlier. Hearing her old tutor saying she looked just like her mother was like being slapped in the face, but hearing Henry say such things was as if he had thrust a knife into her chest without knowing what he had done.

Memories long forgotten came back to her mind and Regina closed her eyes tightly with the weight they brought. For years she hadn't thought about her mother or the things she had suffered in her hands. Only after Emma's arrival and the threat of having the work of her life, her curse broken, did some of these memories reappear. She remembered when Cora killed Daniel and made her a prisoner of her land so she could only get away with that disgusting old man by her side. She remembered when she met Rumplestiltskin and how he manipulated her to use magic. Regina still remembered the adrenaline rushing through her body as she pushed Cora into the mirror and how she liked that feeling. How she'd felt alive for the first time in years. She remembered when she was leaving Leopold's kingdom, finally free and ready to live the life she had always dreamed of, away from it all and somewhere where no one knew her when that Imp stopped her and once again manipulated her.

_"And I won't become like her?"_

_"That, dearie, is entirely up to you."_

And now it was exactly what she had become. A version of her mother, maybe worse. All the atrocities she caused by a vengeance she now wasn't even sure if made sense. Manipulated and used again and again. By Cora, by Rumplestiltskin.

The sound of the door opening abruptly startled her and she turned in her chair in time to see Charming storming into her house with his sword in hand. "I want to see him."

Regina wanted to send him flying away, but she couldn't. She had made a decision and would do whatever it took to follow. She stood up and walked to Charming, her eyes never leaving his. She didn't flinch when the blade of his sword made contact with her skin. "Henry, come down." She stared at the man in front of her. "You won't be using your sword."

"I'd rather not risk it." Charming answered without taking his eyes off the brunette.

"I mean, you won't need your sword." Regina stared at him, and when she saw Henry coming down the stairs, she walked over to him. "Henry, you're gonna go home with David."

"Really?"

"And what do you get out of it, Regina?" Charming's voice made her take a deep breath.

"I think stupidity comes from your side of the family, after all." She turned and stared at him. "I'm the only person who does not wins anything from Henry going to your house. I'm the only person who's going to be alone."

"And why the sudden change of heart?"

"This is not something that concerns you, shepherd." Regina snapped and turned to her son again. "I shouldn't have brought you here. I was- " Regina trailed off. All the memories that invaded her that day and all the feelings that were running through her body almost made her reveal too much. "I don't know how to love very well." She said instead. "I wasn't capable of it for a very long time. But I know... I remember... that if you hold on to someone too hard, that doesn't make them love you." She closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. Maybe one day Henry would understand what she was talking about. She could feel Charming's eyes on her back and she hated to be so vulnerable in front of someone, but if she wanted to move on, she needed to do it. "I'm sorry I lied to you, that I made you feel like I didn't know who you are." Regina lowered the tone of her voice so that only Henry could hear. "I want you to be here because you want to be here, not because I forced you… And not because of magic. I want to redeem myself."

Henry's expression remained neutral all the time, but she could see that he was biting the inside of his cheek and the way his eyes bore into her reminded her of Emma and that only added to the pain in her chest. She was afraid of everything that Emma had aroused in her, but Regina knew she couldn't live by running away.

"Then prove it." David said as Henry returned to his room.

"How?" Regina turned to face him. That shepherd's audacity was unbearable. She would have serious problems not to give in to her impulses and send everyone flying with her magic.

"Answer one question. Does it exist?"

"What?"

"The Enchanted Forest, our land does it still exist?"

Regina went downstairs, debating whether to tell him the truth and what it would entail. "Yes. But I have no idea how to get back there." She ended up saying. David's expression changed and at that moment Regina knew he would do anything to find a way to get there or bring his wife and daughter back, and even against her better judgment, she found herself wishing he could get something. "I can see I just launched you on a heroic quest." For the first time in her life, Regina wished that that _' **I will always find you'**_ nonsense that Snow White and her prince had really worked, because so her Emma would be back, even if she was never hers again.

 


	3. Chapter 3

After the confrontation with Cora in the old castle of Snow’s, they decided to return to the haven. When they arrived, Mulan immediately noticed that something was wrong. "Wait, the tower." She drew her sword and lifted it in front of her. "We always have sentries guarding the entrance. Stay close."

The next moment, Emma was at her side. "What-" She broke off as they set foot on the land. Everyone was dead. Their hearts ripped, leaving only holes in their chests. Emma felt the bile rise and remembered the zombie and horror movies in general that she liked to watch. It was very similar, but worse. "I'll never be able to watch a horror movie again." Emma grumbled.

"Our land." Aurora whispered. "We were protected here. How did the ogres find us?"

"Ogres don't do that." Snow answered bitterly. The memory of Regina telling her how her mother had killed Daniel hit her with everything. "Cora did. Their hearts, they were ripped out." She walked around, looking for survivors, even though it was practically impossible. "This was her magic, twisted and evil." Snow closed her eyes and took a deep breath. The image of Regina before her in the Enchanted Forest beside Daniel's grave, telling her how he had died because of her; and though Snow wanted to defend herself by saying that she was only a child, she couldn't help but feel guilty for what had been done. _"Daniel had his heart ripped out and crushed right in front of me by my own mother because you could not keep your mouth shut."_

"We have to stop her." Aurora said walking beside Mulan.

"It's a little late, princess. She killed them." Mulan shook her head as she looked at their dead companions. "She killed them all."

"No, we have to stop her before she hurts anyone else." Snow said firmly.

"Hey!" Emma called, drawing the attention of the other women. "Hey, there's somebody under there, he's alive."

"Please." The man whined when Aurora and Snow pulled him from under the bodies. "Please help me."

"It's all right." Snow said softly. "You're safe now. No one's going to hurt you."

(...)

Regina was standing in front of Archie's office door for at least ten minutes, still debating internally whether this was a good idea or not. With a deep sigh, she rapped at the door and before she could regret it and leave, Archie was in front of her. His gaze was surprised, but without judgment.

"Regina." He greeted her gently. "Are you here to see me?"

"I've been trying to keep my promise to Henry, but it's been very difficult." When he just looked at her, she completed. "To not use magic. It's been two days."

"That's an excellent start." He said excitedly, but with a professional stance that Regina thought would have gone away when the curse had broken. "Come on in." Archie stepped aside giving her room to walk into the office. "Why don't you tell me more about that promise?"

Regina looked at him intensely for a few seconds, debating about how much she wanted to reveal to the cricket. Taking a deep breath, she decided being honest as possible was best, because only then she could have her son back. "When the curse was broken, I was afraid of losing Henry, but I never considered bringing the magic here. That was Gold-Rumplestiltskin’s work." Regina sighed. "I knew that if I brought the magic to this land, I wouldn't be able to not to use it and end up resorting to old habits and that would make me lose Henry and Em-" She trailed off before she could utter the blonde's name completely, but the discreet widening of his eyes before they softened again gave him away. "I know that although Henry wholeheartedly believes in fairy tales, he still sees me as the only evil in this story and I can't tell him, I can't explain to him what really happened. He's still just a child."

"Henry is still just a child, but he has a wisdom that sometimes I envy myself, Regina." Archie smiled gently and the Queen thanked him for ignoring her near-revelation.

"It's just that magic is the way I've always achieved things." She sighed, shaking her head slowly. "At least after I sent my mother to Wonderland."

"Forgive me if this is too bold, but from what I know of our history, your history," Archie said softly. "That's how you lost everything, too." When Regina didn't throw him flying to the other side of the room, he continued. "I _know_ that all magic comes with a price even when we are trying to do good. _I_ also paid very high once." Regina looked at him curiously, an arched eyebrow and from his look he knew she wanted to ask what had happened, but Archie knew she would hardly do it. "I didn't know you mother apart from the stories I heard in our land, but I met Rumplestiltskin. I know how he gets into your mind and makes it seem like he has the perfect solution for all your problems, when in fact it's just putting you in a position that, depending on your desire, will end up with all the good in you or leave you even more desperate than before."

Regina carefully studied the man in front of her and realized that maybe coming to him hadn't been a bad idea, after all. He really seemed to have a different view than most people about the Enchanted Forest and their stories, and this added knowledge that her curse brought to him was something that made her inexplicably comfortable and made her want to talk to him about everything that was happening and it frightened her. Regina knew better than to trust people.

Before she could say anything, the door opened abruptly, startling them and revealing Whale. "Send me back." He demanded, stopping in front of Regina.

"Excuse me?" Her gaze moved from Whale to Archie and back to the man standing before her.

"To my land. Send me back to my brother."

"Why don't you check the "Missing" board like everyone else?" Regina replied ironically.

"Your curse only brought the living."

"Well, then I'm sorry for your loss." She leaned on the couch, toward him, and there was a tone of irony in her voice, sharper. Anger was bubbling in her chest with the audacity of that doctor. First, he appears at the door of her house slamming her door like a lunatic and tries to kill her (had not been for Emma, he would probably have managed to at least send her to the hospital), but now she had her magic back and could defend herself from people like him. Her hands curled into fists in her lap as she struggled not to send him flying around the room. "But I'm afraid I can't send anyone anywhere." She completed when he didn't move.

"Can't or won't?"

"If I could, believe me, I'd already be there." As soon as the words left her mouth Regina wanted to kick herself internally. Her anger had caused her to reveal more than she should, she only hoped that Whale didn't have half of Archie's perception.

"Dr. Whale, I have to insist. Please." Archie's voice sounded firm and Regina had to fight the amused smile. In all the years she knew the cricket, this was the second time she'd seen him lose his temper and raise his voice to someone. "Go!"

Whale glanced between the Queen and Archie and reluctantly left the office.

"Sorry." Archie said slightly embarrassed, adjusting his glasses over his nose. He looked at her for a moment as if debating what to say next and then with a low sigh he asked, "What you said isn't entirely true, is it? I'm sorry?"

"Excuse me?" Regina looked at him, her eyebrow arched.

"About the curse only taking the living." Archie said carefully. He knew this was a difficult topic for Regina and in front of this situation he didn't want to upset her even more, but he was really worried. "Your father's grave is here, right?"

"I don't care about Whale or his brother. I brought who I wanted." Regina replied feeling the anger bubbling again in her chest. If Archie begun to judge her now, then that visit would have been in vain.

"Anyone else?" He asked softly and when she just stared at him he sighed. "If you want my help you need to tell me the truth, Regina. There is a limit on how I can help you if you don't tell me everything." He took off his glasses and cleaned them on his sweater, putting them back again. "I know trust is hard for you, but I'm not here to judge you."

"His name is Daniel." Regina closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. "I preserved his body with an enchantment spell. He's dead, but frozen, and I've kept him in my family mausoleum."

"Because you couldn't let him go." Archie completed when she became silent. "If you can't let the past go, Regina, then this is doomed to haunt you."

"I don't know how." Regina whispered.

"Leaving your past behind doesn't mean forgetting it." Archie said softly. He noticed the distress on the brunette and stopped. He didn't want to upset her even more, but he couldn't let her leave feeling like that. "Correct me if I'm wrong." He smiled gently at her and Regina just raised an eyebrow at him. "This boy, Daniel, was your first love."

"First and only." Regina interrupted him and Archie chuckled softly.

"Let me finish and then you can think about what I'm going to say." Archie put his glasses back on his nose. "This boy was your first love and he was taken from you brutally, what happened to him--and to you--shouldn't happen to anyone; everyone should have the right to choose, especially whom to love."

"You certainly haven't met my mother." Regina scoffed, but was silent when Archie just gave her pointed look.

"You didn't have time or chance to live your love story once because it was taken from you, but if you keep clinging to the past, if you do not let it go, you will not be able to live a new story." Archie said softly and for a moment he wondered if this time the Queen would finally send him flying through the room. When she didn't say anything, he proceeded carefully. "Many people believe that you chased Snow White because she was the fairest of them all, but we know that wasn't the reason you did all this. No one casts a curse to end someone's happy ending just because they are jealous of her beauty." Archie gave her a look that made her think of Emma and whispered confessions in the middle of the night, in the darkness of her bedroom. Emma, even though she didn't believe in fairytales, even without knowing about her past as the others knew, saw her in a way no one but Daniel had ever seen. "People in our land often prefer to believe in the simplest way of trying to understand what's going on in the hearts of the people around them. The stories aren't just black-and- white, Regina. There's always so much more behind what people let others see."

"I don't know what you're insinuating, but there's no other love story for me to live." Regina snapped. She had come here to talk about Henry and her difficulty in controlling her use of magic. How had they ended up talking about Daniel, love, and Emma? Did Archie know about her involvement with Emma?

"All right, Regina." Archie sighed in defeat. He knew better than to press on the subject. "But think about it, and if you feel the need to talk about it, do not hesitate to call me."

Regina stared at him for a moment and stood up without saying anything. Her mind was spinning with everything they had talked about and since Whale's interruption she couldn't stop thinking about Daniel. What would he say if he saw her this way? So different from the girl he once knew. Would he hate her like almost everyone else? Would he still love her? _"I love you, Regina."_ Her mind betrayed her and carried her back to the night Emma whispered these words into the darkness of her bedroom. Her gaze was vulnerable and frightened by her own confession, but firm in what she was saying. Even afraid, startled by her own words, Emma didn't go back on what she had said and it scared her more than she could explain.

Emma couldn't love her. No one could, but especially not Emma. She was light. The _savior._ The daughter of her mortal enemy and mother of her son. Regina was dark. She was pain. Anguish. Fear. She had never tasted true freedom because even in her Evil Queen days the things she did didn't bring her real pleasure. They were just ways to control people and get what she wanted. Means of pleasing her mother, of proving to her that she had become much more than Cora had once believed she could be, but Emma didn't. Even with her past full of scars and fears she had surrendered to Regina. Delivered her heart to Regina without thinking of the consequences. Emma, who even being tough, had a sweet, vulnerable and gentle side that few people saw. Emma, who without Regina asking, told her about her life, things she knew hurt the blonde deeply, but she trusted Regina.

"Regina?" Archie pulled her out of her thoughts.

"I think this has been quite enough for one day, Dr." The brunette's voice came out thicker than she intended and without another word she got up and left.

Down the stairs, Regina noticed that it had begun to rain and she looked at the heavy rain for a moment. It hadn't rained like that since the day Henry had disappeared a few months ago, then returned with Emma Swan at his side. She shook her head and walked quickly to her car. Talking to Archie had drained her energy and brought back memories that she hadn't dared to think about for a long time, but as she made her way back to the mansion all she could think of was the talk she'd had with Archie about Emma and Daniel.

"Idiot!" Regina cursed when a car passed the traffic light and almost crashed into her car. Regina blinked repeatedly as she saw a person standing on the other side of the street in the rain. "Daniel." She whispered looking again and then shaking her head. There was no way he could be there. That should be just her mind playing tricks. Her emotional state had been a mess since the night Emma had said she loved her and everything that happened afterwards and Regina wasn't sleeping well. When she looked again Daniel's vision was gone so she just went on her way home. What she needed now was a warm shower and a good night's sleep if she wanted to find a way to bring Emma back.

(...)

Emma and Mulan were walking back to the point where Snow and Aurora were standing next to the mysterious man who had _survived_ Cora's attack. Emma could feel the hairs on the back of her neck rise every time she stepped closer to him. There was something wrong with Cora having spared him and she wouldn't stop until she found out what it was. Her _superpower_ was saying there was a lie there.

"Have you seen him before?" Emma asked Mulan as they approached the camp.

"Yes, I've seen him around. He's a blacksmith." She shrugged. "Came to our camp a couple months ago. Said he lost his hand in an ogre attack."

"Why would Cora leave a survivor?" Emma shook her head. "It's messy. From the little I know about her, leaving survivors is not her style unless she has a bigger goal."

"You think he's lying?"

"I think Cora's tricked us before." Emma looked at the warrior beside her. "I don't want that to happen again." Emma straightened as they approached the table where the man was. "Here you go." She put a glass of water in front of him.

"Thank you." He said weakly. "I can't thank you enough for your kindness."

"Luck seems to be by your side." Emma raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms across her chest. "You can start by telling us how you escaped Cora's wrath. Tell me, on an island full of corpses, you're the only one to escape?"

"She attacked at night, slaughtered everyone in one fell swoop." The man counted without looking at Emma. His gaze lingered on the cup in front of him, and his expression was neutral, almost wounded. "When she started ripping out people's hearts, I hid under the bodies of those who had already been killed and pretended I was dead." He looked at her from under his eyelids, his blue eyes shining. "Mercifully, the ruse worked."

"So much for fortune favoring the brave." Emma said in a mocking tone.

"I did everything I could to survive." The man shook his head.

"I'm gonna let you in on a little secret." Emma leaned her hands on the table and leaned toward the man and there was an attractive danger in the way she did it that made him let his cowardly mask slip for a second before he remembered his role. "I'm pretty good at knowing when someone is lying to me." Emma whispered in a way that was both dangerous and sensual.

"I'm telling you the truth!" He said looking into her eyes.

Emma offered him a smile that made it clear she wasn't buying anything he was saying, but the man didn't budge.

"We should leave here in case Cora decides to come back." Mulan suggested.

"We should start searching for a new portal back to Storybrooke." Snow said in a tone that bordered on sarcasm and Emma had to struggle not to respond. "I only got about five minutes with my husband. Not to mention, my grandson."

"You have a grandson?" The man turned to the princess and something in the tone of his voice made Emma's skin crawl. She could feel something wrong with him and she didn't like it.

"Long story." Emma answered before Mary Margaret could say anything else that ended up serving this stranger or Cora to trick them.

"Well, I know this land well." He smiled lazily. "I can guide you."

"You're not gonna guide us anywhere until you tell us who you really are and what you want." Emma hissed and in a swift motion she was pressing a knife against his throat as she held him by the hair.

Ignoring her mother's protests - the word still looking forbidden and strange in her mind - Emma dragged the man to a tree and with Mulan and Aurora's help, she tied him. Emma was definitely starting to like Aurora. Although she sometimes behaved like a spoiled brat, she was not one of those useless princesses she grew up seeing in Disney movies. She had a fire in her eyes, a fury. The blonde's eyes moved quickly to Mulan and she arched a brow as she picked up the warrior staring at Aurora. Mulan immediately blushed and looked away.

"I'm just a blacksmith." The man whined, but it sounded so fake in Emma's ears that she almost wanted to punch him in the face.

"Sure you are." She snapped. "You don't want to talk to us? Maybe you'll talk to the ogres while they rip you limb from limb then." And then Emma put her fingers to her lips and whistled loudly. "Let's go."

"What? You- you can't just leave me here like this!" The man protested as he tried in vain to free himself.

"What if he's telling the truth?" Aurora asked, but her tone gave away that she didn't really believe it.

"He's not." Emma answered and kept walking. _'One, two, three,-'_

"Good for you! You bested me." The man said angrily. "I can count the amount of people who've done that on one hand."

 _'That was quick,'_ Emma thought as she walked back to the tree. "That supposed to be funny? Who are you?"

"Killian Jones." He answered with a superior air and Emma wanted to punch that expression on his face. "But most people have taken to call me by my more colorful moniker, Hook."

"Hook." Snow repeated it as if she knew him.

"As in Captain Hook?" Emma whispered. Her life couldn't get any worse, could it be? What was the next step? Cruella De Vil? Robin Hood? The Little Mermaid? She shook her head to get rid of these thoughts and turned her attention to the man in front of her, now with a name.

"Ah, so you've heard of me." He said with an expression of victory and superiority that Emma wanted to smash.

"You'd better hurry, they're getting closer." Emma whispered in a hurry. "So, unless you wanna be dinner, you better start talking."

"Cora wanted me to gain your trust so I could learn everything there is to know about your Storybrooke. She didn't want any surprises when she finally got over there."

Emma felt as if all her blood had drained from her body. She couldn't let this woman gets close to Regina. Or Henry. Emma remembered how Regina was shaken every time they talked about her mother, even if she had used a colorful truth to tell most of the facts. Emma simply knew she couldn't let this woman gets close to Regina again or she would break her once and for all. Emma knew there was still much to learn about Regina's past and her story, but she knew that no matter what had happened between her and her parents, she wouldn't let Cora hurt her again.

"She can't get there. We destroyed the wardrobe." Snow said, pulling Emma out of her thoughts.

"Ah, but the enchantment remains." Hook said in a mocking tone that was causing the blonde to lose the little patience she had.

They had been trapped in this place for almost a week and there seemed to be no way to get home anytime soon. She was away from her son and the woman for whom she had conflicting feelings at the moment - but still had feelings - and everything in that place made her skin tingle. The food was awful, there were days she didn't sleep well and, not to mention, how much she was missing hot shower.

"Cora gathered the ashes. She's gonna use them to open up a portal." Hook said taking Emma out of her thoughts. "Now if you'll kindly cut me loose."

"No." Mulan replied. The wielding sword pointed at Hook. "We should leave him here to die and pay for all the lives he took."

"That was Cora, not me."

"But you didn't stop her." Aurora retorted. "That makes you as responsible as she is."

"Let's go." Emma said looking at Hook. She had no objection to leaving him behind to be eaten by the ogres.

"Wait!" He screamed and the women stopped. "You need me alive."

"Why?" Emma turned to him irritably.

"Because we both want the same thing- to get back to your land."

"You'd say anything to save yourself." Emma took a few hurried steps towards the tree. "Why are we supposed to believe you now?"

"I arranged for transport with Cora, but seeing how resourceful you are, I'll offer you the same deal I'll help you, if you promise to take me along."

"How are you going to help us get home?" Snow asked, her bow and arrow ready to be used should ogres get to them before they could agree on what to do next.

"The ashes will open a portal, but to find your land, she needs more. There's an enchanted compass. Cora is looking for you while we waste time here." Hook alternated his gaze between Emma and Mary Margaret. "I'll help you obtain it before she does."

"So, Cora won't make it to Storybrooke, and we'll be one step closer to getting home." Emma looked at Mary Margaret silently asking for advice. They were trapped in this land and apparently this was the only way out at the moment.

"Sounds too good to be true."

"There's only one way to find out." Hook replied dropping his mask for a moment.

(...)

The next morning Regina headed straight for her vault. Since leaving Archie's office last night, she hadn't been able to stop thinking about Daniel. The way Whale talked to her left her thinking for hours through the night, and she had the feeling he was going to do something. Upon arriving in her vault, she went straight to her family mausoleum and wasn't surprised when she didn't find Daniel's body. She had a feeling that Whale could try something of the kind to get her attention and her help get back to his brother. A terrible feeling washed over her, and immediately Regina headed for the psychiatric hospital she kept under Storybrooke.

She was torn between hope and happiness if Whale had succeeded in bringing Daniel back to life, and fear. When she wanted to bring Daniel back to life, all those years ago, she was naive and didn't know all aspects of this _art_. When she sought Rumplestiltskin he said that not even he was able to bring the dead back to life and at that time she didn't know if he was actually telling the truth. Nowadays she knew that it had been just another dirty manipulation game for her to become the Evil Queen. Anger, despair, agony and sadness took hold of her all at once, as it had happened so many years ago. Rumplestiltskin manipulated her and broke her in every way he could, just as Cora had done until there was nothing left in her but darkness and a person no one could really love. They turned her into a monster.

Upon arriving at the hospital, she noticed that the nurse Ratched wasn't there and that the door of one of the cells was open, looking quickly inside she noticed that it was empty. It was the cell she held Belle, but Regina couldn't stop to think about what it meant at the moment. She kept walking until she found Whale's room at the end of the hall.

The lights were off, but there was a somber air in the place so Regina pushed the door carefully, placing only her head in the gap and searching for the light switch. "Dr. Whale." She called uncertainly. Nothing. "Where are you?" She asked more firmly and tried to turn on the light. The lights flickered, and a noise of short-circuited wires filled the room, but it was enough for she could see the lab destruction. She turned on her heels and noticed the litter with a blood-soaked sheet, and carefully she lifted the sheet, revealing an arm. "Oh!" She dropped immediately and took a few steps back, startled, she shocked against a lamp hanging from the ceiling. Taking a moment to compose herself she looked around again and noticed a body on the floor. She pushed the litter and saw that it was Whale. She bent down beside the doctor and saw that he was still alive and a wave of relief and anger flooded her at the same time. "I know you took Daniel's body, and you took one of my hearts. Why? Why?!" Whale said nothing. The pain consumed his body and he just closed his eyes. "Did you bring him back?" It was more a statement than a question. She knew he had done this the moment she entered the mausoleum of her family and noticed that her ex-fiance's body had disappeared, as well as one of her hearts.

"I did."

"He's alive." The sense of euphoria overcame her and Regina was no longer able to think properly.

"I brought him back, but he's not Daniel." Whale whined between a wave of pain and another.

"What?" Anger took over Regina for a moment. What was that idiot doctor talking about? How come he wasn't Daniel?

"He's a monster."

Hearing those words directed at someone like Daniel was the same as being slapped in the face. Many years ago, she used the same words to describe her own mother, but Cora was a cruel person who cared for no one but her sought for power. She didn't care who would be the target of her cruelty as long as she got what she wanted, but unlike her, Daniel was a good person. A good man with a heart of gold. The only person besides her father who had been able to love her. Her body was vibrating with the possibility that he might be alive again and what that might entail. For a moment she closed her eyes and the image of Emma Swan invaded her mind. Emma with her sweet and goofy smile who was able to overcome all the walls she had carefully built around herself for so many years. Emma who had said she loved her even after hearing some of the most terrible stories of her past, even though Regina had told through creative truth. She shook her head to brush Emma Swan's thoughts from her head. At that point she needed to take Whale to the hospital and find Daniel before he got hurt or that he hurt someone.

Regina was looking at Whale through the glass walls of the hospital, lost in thought, when David's voice startled her.

"What is going on?" He demanded in an authoritative tone that made Regina wish to be able to send him flying through the waiting room of the hospital. "I just got a call that Dr. Whale was attacked."

"You'll have to ask his doctors."

"No." David pointed his finger at her and Regina felt the hate rising in her chest again. He was very much like Emma in many ways and probably the most tolerable between him and Snow, but even so, Regina wanted to make him pay for his audacity. If it was her days in the Enchanted Forest and he pointed his finger at her and talk to her that way she would probably have turned him into an bug and crushed him with her boots. "I'm asking you."

"I came here to speak with him and discovered he was hurt." She hated how she needed to prove herself to these people now, but if she wanted to have Henry back then she would have to put her pride aside and dance to music. She would do whatever it takes to get her son back.

David raised his eyebrow, clearly showing that he wasn't believing her and that made her lose her temper. "It is the truth!" Regina raised her voice.

"What else? What did you come here to speak with him about?"

_'It's none of your business,'_ she wanted to say, but instead: "Someone from my past. I believe he's come back." She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Daniel, his name is Daniel."

"The man you were supposed to marry." David sighed. " Snow told me what happened, and" David put his hands on his hips and puff his chest. "how it was her fault that he died."

"Yes!" Regina retorted. "He died."

"Well, then how could he be back?"

"Whale." Regina pointed to the unconscious doctor. "He believed he could bring him back from the grave, and I don't know how but he has." Her voice faltered with hope and fear and all the confusion of her heart at that moment. She hated how vulnerable she was in front of David, and there was nothing she could do to keep the tears from falling. The mere thought of Daniel being alive was enough to make her feel like the Regina of all those years ago, before her mother, Rumplestiltskin and all the others corrupted her, broke her until she became cold and cruel.

"You do not know how? " David's eyebrow arched. "Guess."

"He practices something more powerful than magic or so I was told. All he needed was a heart, and he took one of mine."

The hope and joy that colored Regina's voice made David feel the hair on the back of his neck rise. He sympathized with part of what she was feeling because he too had felt the pain of losing Snow once and the hope that their love was strong enough the only thing that kept him going, and he might not be any expert on magic and these things, but he knew that one should not bring the dead back to life. Not without some bad things together. Alarmed, he took Regina by the arm and led her into a corner of the room. "Do you have hearts here?"

"In my vault, from our land."

"Whose heart did he take?" David asked, raising his voice. Panic rising in his chest and he wasn't sure why.

"I have no idea." Regina seemed to rise from her hope for a moment. "I took so many. It was impossible to keep track." She blinked as if waking up from a particularly painful memory. "I have to go. I have to help him." Fear tinged her voice now. Several scenarios going on in her mind and in all of them she lost Daniel again. Regina couldn't handle that thought now. Not when Emma had disappeared through that damn portal for almost a week and she hadn't yet had any success in knowing whether she was alive or not.

"No." David held her by the arms. "Where is he? Look what he did. He's dangerous."

"Not to me, he won't hurt anyone else, David, I promise. " Regina was practically begging now and no longer cared about the tears that threatened to fall. She needed to find Daniel and find out if it was really him. She didn't know what she would do if was really him who was back. If he still would look at her with love or if he would hate her like everyone else. What would be of her and Emma's if it were really Daniel who was back? Could she give up one of them?

"You know I can't take that chance." David said firmly. "You have two choices, Regina." David smiled a humorless smile. "Tell me where he is, or jail."

"I think it's like when you awoke from your coma. He's following his final thoughts to where he last met me the stables."

"No. Henry. Henry's at the stables." David's eyes filled with panic and he ran off before Regina could fully process what he had said.

(...)

Henry was brushing his horse as David had instructed him when his horse began to get agitated and then all the other horses. He looked around in his bay, but saw nothing. His horse jerked and pummeled, sending him against the wall and he fell. In the next moment a shadow appeared at the door of his bay. It was a man. He was wearing one of those clothes Henry used to see in his fairy tale book and he immediately knew he was someone from the Enchanted Forest. He walked weird and seemed to be in pain.

Slowly Henry got up and looked at the man more closely. His hands were stained with blood, but not his clothes. "You- you gotta stop. You're- you're scaring the horses." He approached the man slowly. "Are- are you hurt? Can I help you? Let me help you." When he reached for the man, he felt his hand on his throat and the next moment he was being suspended in the air. Whoever that man was, he was immensely strong, Henry thought. His blue eyes were intense and pure, but there was a pain in them that Henry had never seen in his life. Not a pain like the one he was accustomed to seeing in his mothers, but as if a battle was going on inside him.

Without making any effort he spun on his heels still holding Henry in the air and when the boy thought it was all lost, he heard Regina's voice.

"Daniel, let him go! "

There was a desperation, but also a pain in her voice that Henry had never heard before. He looked at the man who held him and then realized. This was the man his mother loved. The reason she had sought her grandmother for revenge, why she had cast a curse.

Daniel's eyes shifted from the boy to Regina and he immediately dropped him. Before Henry could say anything, David was pulling him out of the bay and telling him to run.

"It's true. You're really here." Regina made uncertain steps toward the bay while David checked if Henry was okay and the boy noticed for the first time the vulnerability in his mother's voice. She looked small and fragile, but the urgency in David's voice to get him out of there didn't let him process what was happening correctly.

Regina looked at Daniel as if in a kind of trance, standing in front of the entrance of the bay while Daniel struggled with his new condition. As he advanced toward her, David pushed her out of the way and closed the door. "It won't hold for long. Can you cast a spell to subdue him? "

"No." Regina looked at him incredulously. "I won't use magic on him." This was probably the most absurd thing David could have suggested. Like she was going to hurt Daniel anyway just because he wanted to.

David then leaned against the door to reach for the gun in his holster.

"What do you think you're doing?" Regina's eyes widened, fear bubbling in her chest.

"He's a monster, Regina!" David shouted. "If you won't put him down, I will!" He turned to open the door, the gun in one of his hands.

"David, please! Just let me talk to him."

The prince looked at her for a second, incredulous. This was probably the first time he had seen Regina beg for something in her life. Genuinely. There was a vulnerability in her voice and in her gaze that he had never seen before and he didn't know what to do with it. A hard bang on the other side of the door brought him back. "It's too big of a risk. There's no telling what he'll do. "

"You have to at least give me a chance!" Regina was desperate with the chance of losing Daniel again. All her feelings seemed to fight in her heart, but at that moment all she wanted was to be able to talk to him, to hug him once more. She needed it.

"Out of the way, Regina! Now!" David pushed her and that was it.

"No! I won't let you hurt him!" She screamed and threw herself against David, even though she knew she would never defeat him physically, but the idea of seeing Daniel dying again without her being able to do anything was worse than anything David could do to her at that moment. "He'll listen to me! Please! Let me talk to my fiancé."

David looked at her for a moment. He had never seen Regina this way, and though he feared what might happen if he opened that door, he knew he couldn't deny her request. David knew in his heart that the man on the other side of the door wasn't exactly the same man Regina had once known, but he knew better than trying to convince someone when it came to love. He and Snow had made sacrifices and foolishness enough to be together and despite everything that had happened between them and Regina, he felt it was his duty to give her this closure. With a nod he moved away from the door and put the gun back in his holster and without saying anything left. It wasn't his right to stay there and intrude at a moment like this.

Regina waited until David disappeared and everything was silent to finally open the door. She could imagine how Daniel was feeling, having awakened from death in a strange world and so grotesquely by Whale and she didn't want to make him more upset. When the door opened Daniel blinked repeatedly at the sudden light and walked uncertainly to Regina.

She just stood there looking at him and a smile spread across her face. Daniel was really in front of her after all these years. He was alive. Regina felt her heart pounding in her rib cage and millions of thoughts and emotions crossing her heart at the same time, preventing her from moving or even saying anything.

Daniel walked towards her and she thought he was going to caress her face, but instead he took her by the neck and pressed her against the wall, choking her.

"Daniel... please stop." Regina gasped. Her hand covering his in a vain attempt to loosen up. "It's me... I love you." She whispered and this seemed to work because he took a deep breath, as if coming to the surface after almost drowning and took a few steps away from her. Regina gasped for air, bringing her hand to her throat.

"Regina..." he whispered.

"Daniel." Regina ran to him and hugged him. She thought her heart would explode when he hugged her back and she wanted to drown in him. In his scent, in his arms. Just stay in that moment forever. After a few seconds she pulled away just enough to look at him and ran her hands down his arms. "I can't believe it's really you." She whispered. "Daniel?" She stared at him, not knowing what to do when he bent and took uncertain steps back.

"Just stop the pain." He begged looking at her.

"How?" Regina approached him again, despair tinging her voice. She was afraid of what his answer would be.

"Just let me go." He cradled her face in his hands gently.

"No!" Her eyes widened and shook her head. "No, I won't lose you again. Without you, I'm lost." She touched his face and he whined in pain again. "Daniel..." She cradled his face between her hands softly. "Daniel, come back to me!"

"I can't, I can't." He whispered, fighting another wave of pain.

"I love you, Daniel." Regina sobbed.

"Then love again." He gasped through another wave of pain. "I know you are already on this path. I can see in your eyes. I know you, Regina." He caressed her cheek and closed his eyes tightly trying to overcome another wave of pain. "I know your heart, Regina. It's kind and you love fierce."

"She will never forgive me." Regina whispered. "Not after everything I've done."

"She will." Daniel smiled. "If she loves you and knows you, she will but don't run away from this, Regina. You, from all people deserve to be loved."

"I don't know if I can do this, Daniel. Everyone I love ends up dead."

"I don't know who she is, but I know she's different. I can see in your eyes." He stepped back, curling when a wave of pain rippled through his body. "Please, Regina. Make this stop. Let me go."

"Daniel, please-" She stopped herself when she looked into his eyes. The kindness, the love, everything good about him had been replaced by that danger she had seen when she and David arrived at the stables. That hate, the pain. She knew she couldn't put him through more pain so, when he stepped closer and raised his hand, she raised hers at the same time, connecting them. She looked at him one more time and for a second his eyes were gentle again. Feeling like her heart was being ripped out again, she waved her hand and Daniel disappeared.

  
  



	4. Chapter 4

A few days after ending Daniel's suffering, Regina decided to go to her vault to see if she could find in her old magic books a way to bring Emma and Snow White back from the Enchanted Forest, since Jefferson's hat was no longer useful. She was sitting on a chest with a book in her hands and three more around her, but so far, she had found nothing useful. Her patience was running thin as her cell phone rang, frightening her into the silence of her vault.

"Hello?" She frowned at the unknown number.

"Regina, it's David. Something happened last night, and since you're still the mayor, I need you to do something."

"And what would it be, _Charming?_ "

"There was an attack..." He sighed. "Billy is dead and George wants to accuse Ruby, but we have no evidence."

"And why would he want to accuse your unbearable wife's pet?"

"Last night was full moon, Ruby's first in 28 years." David glanced at the cell and then walked into Emma's office. "Granny improvised a cage for her in the back of the restaurant, but it turns out it wasn't enough to hold her, and when we found her in the morning she was in the woods."

"It seems to me that you have your answer then." Regina raised an eyebrow.

"It turns out Ruby didn't have any drop of blood on her clothes or any part of her body. If she was responsible for his death, she should be covered in blood, don't you think? "

"And what do you want me to do?"

"Stop George from incriminating Ruby without evidence." David took a deep breath and continued. "It's a full moon again tonight and Ruby will turn. We don't know where her red-hood is, or if it came with the curse. I don't know if the police station cells will be enough to hold her."

"And you want me to babysit your pet?"

"Not exactly, but..." David shook his head. "You must know some containment spell or something that will help keep Ruby safe. I don't want to have to resort to Rumplestiltskin."

Regina sighed and looked at the books around her. She had no reason to help these people, but maybe it was a way to prove to Henry that she was changing. Helping people who were important to him and who hated her, but for this she would have to use magic and she had promised him she wouldn't.

"Regina?" David sounded a little impatient.

"I need to talk to Henry first. I promised him I would not use magic and although it's to help someone, I will not do it if he doesn't agree."

David stared at the device in his hand in disbelief. Regina was willing to help him without arguing. "I think it's fair. If you're really willing to change and want to prove it to Henry..." David nodded and glanced toward Ruby. "I'll get Henry. Can you meet me in the loft in thirty minutes?"

"Alright." Regina sighed and hung up her cell phone. She looked at the books in front of her and placed the one that was on her lap aside. She stood, picking up another book containing some restraint spells. Against her better judgment, she would stop her quest on how to bring Emma back to Storybrooke - IF she was still alive - and would help people who hated her. If Cora saw her now, she would probably berate her by saying how weak she had become and how it would be the perfect opportunity to wipe them out. Regina shook her head to get rid of those thoughts and left the vault to meet David and Henry. Her heart began to pound in her chest with the idea of seeing her son after almost a week, and Regina walked up to her car with renewed energy and determination.

(...)

"It's scarier than I remember the story being." Emma sighed as the group stopped at the foot of a small hill. The beanstalk stood majestically in front of them and was lost sight of high in the clouds. Good thing Emma wasn't afraid of heights.

"Well, your compass is waiting, shall we?" Hook said taking the blonde out of her thoughts.

"Wait." Emma started to follow the man across the hill. "If these beans open... portals - the word still seeming absurd in her mind, as well as everything she had discovered since the curse had broken - why didn't we take one and go back home? Why the compass?"

"Because the beans no longer exist." Hook said impatiently. "I don't know what story you know, but I'm sure it’s wrong."

"There was a guy named Jack, a cow, and something about an evil giant, a treasure and a golden goose." Emma counted on her fingers as they followed the pirate to the beanstalk. "Or a harp."

"Sounds like a lovely tale," Hook said wryly. "But the truth's a little bit more gruesome. The giants grew the beans, but rather than use them for good, they used them to plunder all the lands."

"Ah, like the pirates then." Emma narrowed her eyes and offered him a cynical smile.

"Jack was a man who fought a terrible war, defeating all but one of the evil giants." Hook ignored the blonde's taunting and went on. "The beans were destroyed by the giants as they died. If they couldn't have their magic, then nobody could."

"I hate to agree with him, but Hook is right." Mary Margaret sighed.

"Why doesn't anyone just go up and grow some more?" Emma asked looking up.

"I don't know if you were listening to what I said, but one of them survived." Hook snapped. "One giant survived, the strongest and most terrible of them all. And we'll have to get past him to-"

"Get the magic compass." Snow interrupted him.

"The compass will guide us to your land. Cora has the means to open a portal with the wardrobe ashes, but she can't find your land without the compass. Once we get it, we’ll steal the ashes from her, and then we're on our way."

"How do we know he's not using us to get the compass for Cora?" Mulan narrowed her eyes at the pirate, her right hand resting on the handle of her sword.

"Because you four are far safer company." Hook alternated his gaze between Emma and Mulan. "All I need is a ride back."

"And why are you so interested in going to Storybrooke?" Emma raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms over her chest. "And you better give me a sincere and convincing answer, or I'll let you to turn into giant food."

"For there I will finally be able to obtain my much-desired revenge against the man who cut off my hand and took the woman I loved from me." For the first time, Hook provided a truthful answer. He had already realized that lying to the blonde wouldn't get him anywhere. "I'll swear allegiance to whomever gets me there first."

"Then we'd better start climbing." Emma said and took a step toward the beanstalk.

"You need it before." Hook showed her a leather bracelet on his wrist.

"No, thank you. That kind of accessory doesn't look very good on me."

"So, I failed to mention that the giant enchanted the beanstalk to repel intruders. " He smiled at her. "I've got a counter spell from Cora, if you'd be so kind."

"All due respect, I'm the best-equipped to go." Mulan said as they reached the base of the beanstalk. "How many wars have you been through?" She asked, standing before Snow.

"My share!" The princess replied angrily.

"It should be me!" Aurora interrupted.

"You haven't fought in a battle." Mulan looked at her slightly irritably.

"This is about us getting home to our loved ones."

"I have no family! I have nothing to lose!" Aurora became irritated. She was beginning to feel useless between them, and that was pushing her to the limit. "If I fail, you can still keep trying."

"It's me!" Emma walked over to them, interrupting the discussion. She was already completely without patience to continue among these princesses fighting to try to show themselves better than the other. The only one whom she could actually hold a conversation and relate to, was Mulan. "I'm going, and I'm not gonna fail."

"You're new here." Snow replied looking at her in a way that made Emma's blood boil.

"To go home, I’ll face anything."

Snow stared at her for a moment and sighed. She knew there was no point in getting into an argument with Emma now. That would only drive them farther apart.

"Anything in that bag that's gonna help me with a giant?" Emma asked turning to Mulan.

"Or Hook?" The warrior asked not caring if he would listen or not. "Come with me." She guided Emma to a point where the two of them could talk without anyone listening to what they were saying. "This Powder is made from poppies. He has to inhale it." She took out a small cloth bag and handed it to Emma.

"Your sword, how strong is it?"

"The most powerful blade in all the realms."

"Is it strong enough to cut through that beanstalk?"

"Indeed."

"Give me ten hours. If I'm not back, you cut it down and keep going."

"Snow won't like that."

"That's why I'm asking you. If I don't get back, you get her home."

"I hate to interrupt your chat, but if we want to reach the compass before Cora, I suggest we start the climb as soon as possible." Hook interrupted them.

Emma walked over to him and unzipped the sleeve of her jacket, so he could place the bracelet on her. If her patience ran low with Mary Margaret and Aurora in constant discussions about nonsense, it was even less so when it came to Hook and his charming attempts. If it was another time, he might even have had a chance. Emma wasn't blind. Killian Jones was handsome, and perhaps it was her bad judgment of character when it came to guys since she always ended up picking the worst. Proof of that was Henry's father; if she had not fallen for Regina the moment they met, maybe there would have a chance to him at least be one of her one-night stands, but that wouldn't happen. All she wanted was to get that goddamn compass and get back to Storybrooke- back to Regina and their son- and figure out their relationship moving forward.

"You know, most men would take your silence as off-putting" Hook said taking Emma out of her thoughts and only then did she realize how much they had already climbed. "But I love a challenge."

"I am guarding my energies."

"No, you're afraid. Afraid to talk, to reveal yourself, to trust me."

"You should be used to people not trusting you."

"Ah, the pirate thing." He rolled his eyes. "Well, I don't need you to share. You're something of an open book."

"Really?" Emma stopped her climb and stared at the pirate with an arched eyebrow.

"Quite." He smiled victoriously. "You volunteered to come up here because you were the most motivated. You need to get back to a child and to someone else there, maybe a boyfriend."

"That's not perception. It's eavesdropping."

"Ah, but you don't want to abandon him the way you were abandoned." The mocking tone in Hook's voice made Emma want to throw him off that beanstalk and then punch him in the face.

She clenched her jaw and avoided his eyes.

"Like I said, a good book."

"How would you know that?" Curiosity won the best of Emma.

"I spent many years in Neverland, home of the lost boys. They all share the same look in their eyes, the look you get when you've been left alone."

"Yeah, well, my world ain't Neverland." Emma wanted to get it over with. She hated the fact that Hook could see these things about her.

"But an orphan is an orphan." He panted while climbing. "Love has been all too rare in your life, hasn't it? You ever even been in love?" There was genuine curiosity in his voice this time.

"No, I have never been in love." Emma lied. Even if Hook could read her, she didn't trust him to open up. There was something about him that made her skin tingle. The fact that he was Cora's ally and could be doing this just to pick up the compass and deliver it to her made Emma want to leave as quickly as possible.

(...)

Regina parked in front of the small building and climbed up to Snow's apartment, her heart pounding madly in her chest at the thought of seeing Henry. She paused at the door and hesitated for a few seconds before finally knocking.

"Regina." Charming greeted her a moment later and she could see in his expression that he was relieved and surprised at the same time, almost as if he still didn't believe she would appear. He moved aside to give her room to enter.

Henry was sitting on the couch holding his fairy-tale book in his lap with a curious look on his face.

Regina walked uncertainly toward him, and sat beside him, though not quite sure how to act. She wanted to hug him and put him on her lap, but she was afraid he would refuse contact. If he did, she didn't know if she could stand the rejection, so she just waited.

"Is it true that David asked you to help Ruby with magic and you said you would only do it if I agreed?" Henry asked after a few seconds of embarrassing silence.

"Yes, my prince." Regina smiled weakly. "I promised you that I would not use magic and I'm doing everything to keep my promise. I haven't used it since the day you came here. Except with Daniel..." She felt a lump forming in her throat at the memory of her reunion with Daniel.

"And are you willing to help David and Ruby?" Henry asked suspiciously, and Regina just nodded. "Why?"

"Because it's the right thing to do." She twisted her fingers nervously. "I'm trying to redeem myself. To change, and be the best I can for you, Henry."

"And you're also trying to find a way to bring Emma and Mary Margaret back?" He looked at her curiously. "Or are you glad they're away?"

"I looked at some books, but I still couldn't find anything useful." Regina sighed. "I don't know how we can get to them, but I'll find a way, my prince."

"Okay." He stared at her intensely, then nodded, looking pleased with her response. "And you found a way to help Ruby?"

"Yes." She finally took her eyes off Henry and looked at David. "I found some containment spells in one of my books. I just need to know where David plans to keep Miss Lucas to get what I need."

"Maybe it's best to take her somewhere where George can't get close to her." David said thoughtfully. "Since this town is your creation, do you have any suggestions, Regina?"

"Excuse me, but I was not thinking of a kennel when I casted the curse."

"Regina..." Charming rolled his eyes.

"I'm afraid we'll have to improvise." Regina sighed. "We can lock her up in one of the cells in the psychiatric hospital, maybe the best place, I don't think there's anywhere else we can keep her beyond the station or the hospital."

"Wait..." David walked over to Regina, his eyes narrow and displayed an expression she couldn't decipher, but bothered her. "You said you're working on a way to bring Emma and Snow back?" The words finally registering in David's head. "Why?" He asked when the brunette just nodded.

"Because contrary to what everyone thinks, I'm not thrilled with happiness for them being there, seeing that my son is suffering by not having that careless idiot of his other mother around." Regina replied, averting her eyes.

David narrowed his eyes even more, and stared momentarily at the woman before him. There was something in the way Regina referred to Emma that he still couldn't put his finger on; it was almost like genuine concern. Maybe even a little affection. He shook his head to get rid of those thoughts. He wanted to tell himself that Regina couldn't feel affection for anyone but Henry, but David had seen her when she learned that Daniel had returned from the dead, and the despair when he wanted to kill him. _'Cora is dangerous because she doesn't have a heart._ _Regina is even more dangerous because she has one.'_ Those words echoed in David's mind and he honestly didn't want to know what that might mean at that moment. If she was really working on a way to bring his family back, he would be grateful even if he didn't share his own advances with her to try to bring them back from the Enchanted Forest. "Thank you, I guess." He finally said.

"We don't have much time until nightfall." Regina cleared her throat, fidgeting nervously with the hem of her shirt. "I need to prepare the potion that completes the spell to hold Miss Lucas."

"What you need?"

"I'm going back to my vault and start working on it now that we've set a place to keep Miss Lucas." Regina got up and wiped invisible lines on her shirt. "Take her to the psychiatric hospital so she can get used to the place. Is there anyone who can keep her company?"

"Maybe Belle can." David said scratching his chin. "They've been getting closer since the curse broke. It's good for Belle to have a friend."

"I doubt Miss French will want to go back to the psychiatric hospital." Regina sighed. "I've kept her there for the last 28 years."

"What? Why?" David asked incredulously.

"I wanted to take revenge on Rumplestiltskin." Regina answered flatly. "That's all you need to know for now."

"Right." David sighed. "If Belle can't keep her company, I'll think of somebody else."

"Okay." Regina grabbed her coat and bent down to give Henry a kiss, which had surprisingly watched the whole _meeting_ in silence. "I'll meet you there later this afternoon."

(...)

When they finally finished climbing the beanstalk it was already night and Emma thought that never in her life had seen the stars so closely. She thought it was a beautiful sight to enjoy, but it would have been better if she had a certain brunette at her side. She turned slowly, taking in everything around her. Despite the skeletons scattered around the place, it was beautiful. It looked like a ground-floor castle made entirely of stone, but odd without windows. Huge shields and debris were strewn across the courtyard. "What happened here?" She asked, still breathless.

"The final battle was here." Hook answered a little out of breath. "Give me your hand."

"What?" Emma instinctively looked at her hand and noticed that there was a large cut in her palm.

"Your hand, it's cut. Let me help you."

"No, it’s okay-" Emma started, but was stopped by Killian, who grabbed her arm with his hook.

"No, it's not."

"So now you're gonna be a gentleman?" Emma tried not to show the tension that had taken hold of her body.

"Giants can smell blood." He said leaning toward her. "And I'm always a gentleman." He took the rum canister in his bag and opened it with his mouth, spilling the liquid into the blonde's palm next.

"Holy shit!" Emma cursed. "What the hell is that?"

"Rum. A bloody waste of it." He inspected the cut quickly and then took the handkerchief around his neck, wrapping it in the blonde's hand and tying it with some difficulty.

"Okay, now let's get this compass so we can get out of here, " Emma said, dropping her arm from Killian's hook.

"Not so fast, luv." Pirate smirked. "We have to wait for the giant to sleep to get through it.

"Or we can just throw the powder Mulan gave us at him, and he will fall asleep, so we take the damn compass and leave."

"Well, that's riskier, but it should work." Hook said taking the sack of cloth that Mulan had given Emma.

"Who is Milah?" The blonde asked when she saw the tattoo on his arm.

"Someone from my past." Killian said and began to walk to the entrance of the castle.

"Where is she?"

"She's gone." Hook replied without looking at Emma.

"Gold." She said still standing in the same place. "She's the woman you mentioned earlier, isn't it? Rumplestiltskin took her from you."

It made Hook stop in his tracks and finally turn to face the blonde. He studied her for a few moments in silence. He knew she had lied when she said she hadn't be in love before. He knew that look. "For someone who's never been in love, you're quite perceptive, aren't you?"

"Maybe I was once."

Hook looked at her in silence. Better than knowing the look of someone who had already been in love, he knew how to recognize the look of pain. It didn't matter how much he wanted to push Emma to the limit so it would be easier to manipulate her, he knew this wasn't the time.

He was getting close to her and would do it the best way he knew- he would gain her trust so that he could take the compass. He knew there was more than she was letting through and he could see in her eyes that there was someone in that Storybrooke who held the blonde's heart. He just needed to push the right buttons to get under her skin. "I see." He finally said and when she nodded, he helped her climb a statue beside the castle entrance.

Killian ran across the patio and picked up a piece of bone to use to attract the giant's attention and bring him out, so they could use the poppy powder and put him to sleep. He hit the bone against a fallen shield on the ground and in seconds the ground beneath him began to tremble. Emma slipped on the statue and almost caused their plan to fail, but with some difficulty she managed to straighten herself on statue's shoulder.

The giant stopped at the entrance of the castle and Emma found herself torn between fascination and fear. He was unlike anything she imagined or knew from the stories she'd read in her childhood. Though _giant,_ he did not look like the evil being Hook and Mary Margaret had described earlier. Luckily for her, he didn't turn to look in her direction, and before he entered the castle again, Killian drew his attention with insults until he finally brought him close enough that Emma could throw the poppy powder on his face and he fell asleep immediately.

When they finally reached the place where the giant kept his treasures, Emma couldn't help but think how that place reminded her of the cave that Aladdin had entered for Jafar in the cartoon she knew so well and was one of her favorites.

Killian began to look around the treasures and stood before a pedestal with a few bags of gold, silver and bronze coins among other treasures. He took some coins and put them in his pocket.

"I don't want to be here when he wakes up." Emma rolled her eyes. Once a pirate, always a pirate.

"What's the rush, luv?"

"How long do you think magic knockout powder lasts?"

"I have no clue." He answered picking up some more treasures and putting it in his bag.

"That's my rush."

"That's right, lass." He finally stepped away from the pedestal and started pacing the room. "Come. Everything we need is right in front of us."

(...)

When Regina finally arrived at the psychiatric hospital, which was under Storybrooke's general hospital, she was surprised to see Belle keeping Ruby company. She didn't really expect to see the woman there after being held prisoner in one of those cells for 28 years.

"Regina." Belle greeted her politely.

"Miss French." Regina nodded and looked inside the cell, seeing Ruby sitting in the corner. "I didn't expect to see you here."

"Ruby needs me." Belle simply replied. "Any memory I have of here is no more important than offering comfort to a friend when she needs it."

"I apologize for what I did to you." Regina said sincerely, and the women looked at her surprised. "I was blinded for revenge against Snow White and Rumplestiltskin and I honestly didn't consider the people I could hurt in the process. I was so overwhelmed by the darkness that my mother and Rumple had created in my heart that I couldn't think of anything but cause them some kind of pain." Regina didn't know why she was opening up like this with the women in front of her, but it was almost as if she couldn't control the words coming out of her mouth. "I thought there was no greater pain than what I experienced in the Enchanted Forest, but seeing my son look at me as Henry looks... that is worse than any other pain, and I can't live with that."

"And what's keeping you from casting another curse?" Belle asked, tilting her head to the side. She had never had much contact with the Queen in the past, but surely the woman before them at that moment was _very_ different from what she knew. Something had changed in Regina and it wasn't just because of Henry.

Ruby perked up at Regina's words and she straightened up to be able to observe her better. Her wolf senses were sharper than normal, having being asleep for 28 years and she could feel Regina. She felt the emotions rolling from the brunette in waves and heard her heart beatings. Ruby could smell something coming from Regina that she still couldn't pinpoint exactly what it was, but it was another smell, something that didn't belong to the Queen, or Henry.

"Henry said you're trying to find a way to bring Emma and Snow back." Ruby ventured. She wanted to see Regina's reaction and find out if there was anything else behind her motives.

"Yes." Regina nodded and moved uncomfortably in front of the women. "Em- Miss Swan fell in the portal trying to save me from the wraith, and I feel it's my duty to find a way to bring her back. As I told David earlier, contrary to what everyone thinks I'm not happy to see my son suffering with half his family away, not knowing whether they are alive or not."

Ruby watched her in silence as Regina spoke and her eyes widened slightly as she noticed the change in the brunette's heartbeat as she said Emma's name. Ruby wasn't sure yet, but if she had to bet on something, she'd bet her friend and the Queen had fallen into some kind of relationship. She looked at the brunette more closely and noticed how Regina's posture changed as she spoke of Emma. Was she falling in love with the blonde? If that were the case... _'Oh, shit.'_ Ruby cursed internally. If it was this, she would rather not know because she definitely didn't want to be in the middle of the war that could come.

Ruby groaned low as she remembered a particular night when she and Emma had drunk a little too much, and the blonde confessed that she was seeing a woman but couldn't tell who she was. _'This is fucking great, Emma.'_ Ruby pressed her head against the padded wall and knew that Regina was looking curiously at her.

"Ruby, is everything okay?" Belle rushed to her side to check if the wolf was okay. "Regina, maybe we should start preparing the spell before it's too late." Belle turned to look at the Queen, but Regina's eyes were locked with Ruby's. A look of absolute terror in her eyes. "Look, Ruby is not a monster." Belle said impatiently, clearly misunderstanding Regina's reaction.

"It's all right, Belle." Ruby turned to look at the girl in front of her, finally breaking eye contact with the Queen. "So, Regina, how does this spell work?" Ruby straightened on the bed near the window. The cell she was in was small, but with luck it would help contain the wolf.

"I've made some changes in the spell, so the cell changes its format." Regina took a step inside the cell and put the things she had brought with her on the mattress. "This wall will look like glass, but the other walls will still be protected so you don't get hurt."

"I don't know if that's a good idea." Ruby whispered.

"Don't worry, Miss Lucas." Regina picked up a vial that contained a purple liquid and walked to the opposite wall of the bed where the wolf was. "It's just a glamor so you don't feel so lonely. The wall will continue rock solid, but Miss French and I can see you and hear you on the other side, and the door will be reinforced with the contention spell."

The women turned in identical expressions of surprise when Regina spoke.

"Are you going to stay here all night?" Ruby asked with an arched eyebrow.

"If you don't mind..." Regina shrugged. "I'd like to make sure the spell is working properly and that you're safe. Plus, if George has the audacity to appear here I can guarantee he will not hurt any of you."

"This is-" Belle opened and closed her mouth a few times, not knowing exactly how to end that sentence. The woman in front of them was definitely another Regina. "Thank you." Belle said instead.

"Don't thank me yet, Miss French." Regina said returning to focus on the incantation to leave the wall looking like glass. "Magic is still unstable here, let's hope everything went as planned." Regina concentrated, and in a few minutes the wall began to change, giving way to a glass wall. She smiled, pleased with herself, and when she turned to look at the women behind her, they were smiling genuinely at her. "Maybe we should test. Throw something heavy against the wall just to be sure..."

"Sure." Ruby got up and walked to Whale's room down the hall and then came back with a small table that used to stand in one corner of the room.

Regina and Belle stare at her in silence, and the Queen couldn't help notice the ease with which the wolf carried the small piece of furniture. Or the way her arms flexed with the weight she was carrying. They pulled away enough, and then Ruby threw the table against the glass wall. The furniture hit the wall with a loud thud and broke, but the wall remained without a scratch.

"I hope Whale doesn't mind." Ruby chuckled.

"If he cares, he can come and talk to me." Regina answered. "Miss French, please leave the cell so I can lock the door with the spell."

Belle walked over to Ruby and wrapped her in a hug, whispering a few words in her ear and Regina left the cell to give them some privacy. She watched from the outside and felt a pang of jealousy from the scene. Emma and her could never display that kind of affection. No one would understand. Everyone would think it was just another Evil Queen plan to destroy Snow White's happiness.

Regina took care of the other cell and waved her hand, making the mattress she and Belle would be on a little more comfortable. She put her bag in the corner and when Ruby was left alone in the cell, she went to the door and dumped the other vial- this time with an orange liquid- on the metal. The door shimmered and then returned to normal. "It's done, now we just have to wait." She looked at Belle and gestured for her to sit down.

They sat in silence for a few moments until curiosity won the best of Regina. "You don't have to answer if you don't wish to, but I thought you'd be with Rumplestiltskin."

Belle looked at her silently, considering what to say to her, looking for some sign that Regina was searching for some information that could be used in her favor, but when she found nothing she sighed and said, "I tried. I thought after all he could change for me, but it turns out that Rumple will never change. He wasn't able to do this for Bae, or me." Belle shook her head. "As much as we love someone, we need to learn to let them go when that person just hurts us."

"You and Miss Lucas seem very close." Regina said instead of thinking about what Belle had said. She was never good at letting anything go except, of course, Leopold. That bastard was gone too late.

"Ruby is a good person." Belle smiled warmly. "I know everyone thinks she's a monster, but I can see the kindness in her, the golden heart she possesses." Belle turned to look at the Queen. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry for the things that happened to you in the past and the way they happened, I know the facts aren't exactly like most people think they are. There is always more behind our stories than the world knows."

"You've always seen the good in people, even Rumplestiltskin."

"But unlike you, he chose to be this way. He embraced the darkness because he wanted to." Belle said softly. She knew it was a delicate topic and she didn't want to risk annoying the Queen with it, but she could see something different in Regina. "I lived enough time with him to know what he was capable of. How he could manipulate people to get what he wanted. When I met him, he had already turned you into Evil Queen, but I saw him destroy other people. I'm really sorry, Regina."

"What happened in the past can't be changed, Miss French."

"You're right, but we can try different now and I'm really happy to see that you're willing to do that."

"Henry deserves a better mother. I don't want to be to him what Cora was to me."

"You're better just for trying, Regina." Belle touched the brunette's arm, squeezing gently.

Not sure how to answer, Regina preferred to take one of the books she had brought to entertain her during the night, and perhaps find a way to bring Emma back, and began to read.

"May I help?" Belle asked after a while. "If I don't entertain myself with something, I'll probably fall asleep."

"I guess it doesn't hurt." Regina smiled. She took another book from her purse and handed it to the girl. "I'm looking in the old books for any way to open a portal or anything that might help, but so far I've only found portals that need magical objects, like beans or Jefferson's hat that has been destroyed."

Belle accepted the book and dived into reading, the two enjoying the pleasant silence.

When the moon finally appeared in the clear, cloudless sky, Regina and Belle were taken from their books by a loud snarl. They looked at the glass wall and couldn't look away from what was happening. Ruby's eyes glowed in intense yellow and her body arched forward, she bent to the ground and little by little long, sharp claws took the place of her hands. A shiny black coat spread across her body and the wolf took shape before them. A black and majestic wolf. Larger than any creature they had ever seen. When the transformation was complete the wolf stood on its four paws and stared at them. A loud howl echoed through the cell and Ruby lunged against the glass wall, which, to Regina's relief, remained intact.

Consequently, the wolf calmed down when she couldn't get out of there and fell asleep on the floor. Regina and Belle returned to their readings and occasionally stared at the sleeping figure on the other side of the glass wall.

_ The room had dark walls combined with blood red curtains. The floor was white, with large squares. Regina looked frantically around and noticed that there were no windows in that room. Or a door. How was she going to get out of there? To her desperation, the room began to be consumed by flames from all sides and suddenly she found herself caught in the middle of the fire. She spun around in the room, desperately searching for a way out when her eyes finally caught in a form in a corner of the room.  _ **_Emma._ ** _ The brunette shook her head and looked again in fear that it was just a sight, but when she opened her eyes she was still there. "Emma!" Regina called and tried to walk toward her, but the fire was practically impossible to cross. "Emma! Is it really you? " _

_ The blonde smiled that goofy smile and walked with difficulty until she got close enough. "Regina." She breathed. _

_"You're alive." The brunette whispered._ _"Are you alright?"_

_ "I am, but you need to know..." Emma put her hand in front of her face to protect herself from a flame that rose in front of her. "Your mother is trying to get to Storybrooke, I've got a way back, I'll do my best so she can't cross, but you have to be prepared. If there's the slightest chance she's going through the portal, I want you to destroy it immediately even if it means causing me to be stuck here forever." _

_ "I cannot do that, Emma. Henry would never forgive me." Regina felt the tears burn behind her eyelids. Cora was alive. This was the worst nightmare of her life. She had seen her body. Hook had assured her it was her. That damn pirate! She would find a way to bring Emma back. "How do you plan to return?" _

Before Emma could respond, the flames intensified and Emma disappeared.

"Emma!" Regina woke with a scream. Her chest rose and fell quick and she noticed that sweat was running down her forehead and neck.

Before her, Belle looked at her curiously and appeared frightened.

"They're alive." Regina whispered.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay, guys.   
> I'm waiting for my beta to hand me the chapter back but something happened with her pc so, I'm posting this chapter without being betad' and as soon she hands me the chapter back I will update this one.

"How do you know they are alive?" Belle asked when the Queen finally calmed down.

"I was in a flaming room and Emma was there. I know it wasn't a dream." Regina whispered. "She told me they're trying to get back to Storybrooke but there are some…" The brunette licked her lips, trying to gather her thoughts. "Obstacles in their way."

"What kind of obstacles?" Belle looked at Regina feeling a little apprehensive.

"My mother." Regina said darkly. Of all her nightmares, Cora being alive and trying to get to her was one of her worsts.  _ 'That damn pirate. He promised me she was dead. He brought me her body. I saw her.'  _ Regina was pulled form her thoughts when Belle touched her shoulder gently.

"We will find a way to stop her and help Emma and Mary Margaret back to Storybrooke."

"You don't know my mother." Regina eyes were shinning with a fear Belle never thought possible for the Evil Queen. "She will do anything in her power to get here."

"You're right about it." Belle smiled. "I don't know your mother, but I can't let you think this way now."

"And how do we think we can stop her?" Regina asked, her voice raw with fear and rage. "The only person powerful enough to stop her is Rumple and I don't want to resort to him for help."

"And we won't." Belle said firmly. She had no idea who Regina's mother was or how powerful but seeing the way it made Regina instantly retreat and look like a scared little girl was enough for her to know that they had to stop her. "We will find a way to stop you mother without having to ask Rumple for help."

"Why are you willing to help me?"

"Because I believe people change." Belle said simply. "And because you helped Ruby last night. If wasn't for you George probably would have come after her at the station and we don't know what could have happened. And before you think I'm doing this because I feel like I owe you, this isn't the reason."

"Why then?"

"I can see in your eyes, Regina." Belle smiled.

The Queen looked at her for a moment, trying to gather her thoughts for a sassy retort but nothing came. For some reason she knew she could trust Belle and that the woman held no grudge against Regina even after everything. She still didn't understand how someone could be like that. Believing in people so freely, not holding a grudge or not hating someone even when that person has hurt you so much. But then, Regina had been like that once. Until Cora and Rumple broke her. Manipulated her. Almost destroyed her completely. She almost had forgot how to love until… until Henry and then Emma. The thought of loving the blonde still was the most scaring for Regina but deep down she knew that was true.

"We should go and start this quest soon so we can stop Cora and bring them back." Belle said, taking the Queen out of her thoughts. "Do you think you can communicate with Emma again tonight?"

"Maybe." Regina sighed. "I honestly have no idea how it happened, but I can definitely try again tonight."

"Good." Belle smiled again and stood up. "We should get Ruby and some breakfast then, so we can work on how to help them."

"You're probably right." Regina picked up her things and headed for the next cell to free Ruby. "But I'm not going to Granny's for breakfast. I don't think it's a good idea."

"We can go to wherever you like." Belle reassured her.

"I think it's better if Miss Lucas let her grandmother know she's okay and that I didn't kill her during the night."

Belle rolled her eyes. She knew this was some defense mechanism and she promised to herself she would help Regina, too.

(…)

After seeing her grandmother Ruby joined Regina and Belle at the library to look through some books. They filled her in about what had happened while Regina lead them down the library through a secret door. The same door that lead to Storybrooke's underground. There she kept some of the most powerful books. Her special collection.

"What is this place?" Ruby asked while they descend. "And what is this smell?"

"This is Storybrooke's underground, Miss Lucas." Regina sighed. "And this is smell is probably what was left by the previous occupant."

"I'm going to want to know what or who it was?"

"No, not really." Regina answered. "And this isn't the most important to be honest. We're here to try and find a way to stop my mother  _ and _ help Emma and Mary Margaret get back to Storybrooke safely."

They descend in silence after that and Regina lead them through tunnels until they stopped at an entrance of what looked like a cave. The Queen pressed her hand against the cold stone wall and the sound of heavy gears echoed through the place. The floor trembled a little under them and then a heavy stone door started to slide before them.

"Wow. You have a nice place here." Ruby whistled. "You brought all the Enchanted Forest to Storybrooke?"

"Not everything." Regina answered without looking at her. "I brought only what I thought could be important or what I would need some day."

"May I ask why you thought you could need this place?" Belle asked while Ruby was too distracted looking around.

"While I was certain that my curse would work, I knew Rumplestiltskin might have something planned. He needed me to cast his curse but deep down I knew he needed someone to broken it." Regina ran her hand gently over the book covers, her eyes never leaving the books in front of her as she searched for something that might help. "Though I have no idea why."

"Bae." Belle whispered. "It's the only reason why he could do something like this."

"Who is Bae?" Regina turned to her. Genuine curiosity in her eyes.

"Rumple's son." Belle sighed. "He tried to free Rumple from the darkness. The only thing he wanted was a father and that was the only thing Rumple couldn't be for him while being the Dark One. Bae found a way and tried to persuade Rumple to go with him to a land without magic, but at the last moment Rumple stepped back. Bae fell through the portal and Rumple never heard of him again."

"If he wanted to go after his son why didn't he just open a portal or something? He is the damn Dark One, after all!"

"I don't know much more of this story, I'm sorry." Belle smiled apologetic. "Rumple never told me much about his life before turning the Dark One."

"That's okay, dear." Regina smiled tired. "Let's focus in finding something that might help us and Em- Miss Swan and Snow White to come back safely, shall we?"

Ruby shook her head hearing Regina, but she wouldn't push that matter now. She knew that pressing her to talk about her relationship with her blonde friend would only make the Queen shut them down and they needed to get Emma and Snow back. She glanced at Regina and started looking through the books there.

(…)

Emma was glad that only Mulan was at her side when she woke up. Her mother had gone out with Aurora to find some things they could use at night.   

"Are you okay?" Mulan asked upon seeing the disheveled blonde.

"Was just a dream, I guess."

"You seemed quite upset during your dream. What was it?" The warrior asked cautiously.

"I dreamed with Regina." Emma sighed. "In this world you guys only know her as the Evil Queen, but she's not. She's just Regina."

"Your mother knows you love her?"

"I-" Emma blushed, then sighed. She knew it was useless to try to deny it. Besides, she'd confessed her feelings to Regina herself before everything turned upside down and spiraled out of her control. "I don't think so." Emma sighed. "She can never know. She wouldn't understand."

"Why not?"

"She thinks Regina is the reason why we were apart for 28 years but the decision of trusting Rumplestiltskin and put me in a magic wardrobe that would send me to God knows where hers was only." Emma ran a hand through her hair. "She would never admit that the real reason why we spent all those years apart was her. She could have kept me with her, and we would have lived together even under the curse and that would have been better than having spent my entire life wondering why my parents abandoned me as soon as I was born."

"I can't imagine what this feels like." Mulan whispered. "But at least you are together now."

"You know what's funny?" Emma chuckled humorlessly. "When we were under the curse, we would talk about everything. We were friends… but after the curse broke, she changed."

"I can't imagine how hard this might be for you. For you both."

"I doubt this is hard for her." Emma looked away. "She has everything. She has a husband that love her, that could die for her, and now she has me and my son, but I don't feel this way. I feel like I am only a thing for them. They don't see me as their daughter. They only see me as a  _ Savior. _ I never wanted this." The blond stood up, pacing back and forth while trying to control her emotions. She was tired, afraid and hurt. She just wanted to go home and maybe, with some luck, sleep next to Regina. She needed to feel the comfort of the other woman's body against hers, even if only to sleep. Regina brought a peace to Emma that she couldn't explain. As much as the brunette tried to put some distance between them, Emma felt safe as never before when she was in Regina's arms.

"But  _ this _ is what brought you back to your son and brought to your life someone you love."

"What's the use if she doesn't want to be with me?"

"She said this?"

"Not exactly." Emma wrapped her hair in a ponytail. "She gave me an apple turnover. This is how I broke her curse."

Mulan eyebrown rose and she shook her head. "Maybe you should work in this when you're back."

"I don't know if there's anything to talk. I told her I love her, and she gave me an apple turnover." Emma leaned against a tree and looked at the sky that was beginning to clear. "She doesn't want me. She doesn't feel the same way."

"Things might be difficult but I don't think she doesn't feel the same way." Mulan said softly. She felt a connection with the blonde and was good to be able to talk to someone who might understand her. "Maybe she's scared. You don't know her mother, Emma. Cora is… scaring. That woman doesn't feel anything for anyone. The only thing she love is power. She traded her own daughter for it."

"Maybe you're right." Emma sighed. "But what about you? When you plan to say to Aurora what you feel for her?"

"I-" It was Mulan turn to blush and try to get out of this topic, but then again, maybe Emma would understand her. "I can't say to her now. She just lost Phillip. He was her true love."

"I don't know much about this true love thing," Emma said. "But I know about the chances life gave us sometimes. I didn't have much during my life but the ones I had I tried to make the best of them."

"But this is different."

"It is not." Emma smiled. "I know it's a hard time, she just lost someone she loved but if you don't say anything, you will think about it for the rest of your life, always wondering how it would have been or what could have happened. And  _ this _ is worst than knowing the truth. Trust me, I know."

(…)

By lunch time Regina, Belle and Ruby had covered a great part of her hidden place and they had found some interesting things that might help them, but Regina wanted to take a look at Henry's book. Maybe they could find something useful there. And she was starting to get hungry. "I think we should take a break, eat something." She said closing the book in her lap. "Besides, we have to get ready for tonight. After all, is full moon again."

"I could use a break." Ruby chuckled. "I can go to Granny's and grab us some lunch."

"Or I can cook something for us." Regina shrugged. " I promise not to put any of you on some kind of curse."

"You know, Regina," Ruby sighed. "not everyone sees you as the complete villain of this story. Some of us know there is more to what has happened even though we didn't know what exactly. I can feel that you're changing and besides" Ruby approached the brunette and put a hand on her shoulder. "I saw you with Henry during all these years. For someone known as Evil Queen, you're pretty soft with him. I might be Snow's best friend and all but I'm not blind. So, if you want to make us some of your famous lasagna I'm down." Ruby grinned. "Just don't let Granny hear this."

Regina arched an eyebrown at her and chuckled. Maybe things were really changing and not everyone blamed her for everything, and she knew who were responsible for that. If wasn't for Emma none of this would happen. She had broken Regina's curse, and thanks to her lack of care and hero's blood running through her veins, she was trapped in another realm, but if it weren't for Emma she would still be trapped in a life where nothing ever happened. She still didn't trust them to let her walls down but maybe, just maybe she could relax a little. There are people at her side, and they didn't expect nothing in return. They didn't want anything in return. "I think I still have some left over if you don't mind."

(…)

After they headed to the Mayor's house and ate, discussing some alternatives they found in some of the books under Storybrooke, Regina told them she wanted to take a look on Henry's book. Maybe they could find something there, after all, that book only told the  _ heroes _ stories.

They headed to Snow's loft and Regina shifted uncomfortable before the door. She would need to tell them about what happened last night, and she knew they would ask her how that was possible and while she had some suspicious, she didn't want to tell in front of Henry.

Ruby knocked on the door and David soon opened. His browns furrowed in confusion but before he could say anything Ruby gently shoved him out of their way so they could enter the place.

"Is everything alright?" He asked after a few moments.

"Yes, David." Ruby smiled. "We might have found some ways to bring Emma and Snow back, but we need Henry's help."

"How?" He stepped closer. "And why do you need Henry's help?" He looked suspiciously at Regina and Ruby rolled her eyes.

"Emma and Snow are alive. Regina was able to contact Emma last night while sleeping." Ruby started and when he opened his mouth, she silenced him with just a look. "They are okay and might have a way back but Regina's mom in trying to get here, too and no one wants that." Ruby leaned against the kitchen counter and exchanged a glance with the brunette. "We need Henry's help because we think that might be something in his book that could help us to get Regina's mom out of your wife and your daughter's way."

"How did you get to contact Emma?" David inquired and Regina had to fight the urge to answer him sarcastically.

"I don't know,  _ Charming _ ." She hissed. "I was surprised as you but at least now we know they are alive and might have a way to come back but you daughter is already trying to play the hero."

"What to you mean?" They asked at the same time.

"You daughter said that  _ If there's the slightest chance she's going through the portal, I want you to destroy it immediately even if it means causing me to be stuck here forever. _ " Regina said in a strangle voice and this didn't go unnoticed by them.  _ 'The audacity of that idiot!' _ Regina thought.  _ 'As if I would leave her trapped there with my mother.' _ Regina shook her head slightly. "I don't want to resort to Rumplestiltskin because we know better than that."

"You can't possibly be thinking in agree with that, right?"

"Of course not!" Regina's eyes widened. "I already told Henry that I will do anything I can to bring them back."

David eyed her for a moment, trying to find more behind her words but Regina's face was unreadable. "Okay." He nodded. "I'll get Henry's book."

David climbed to Emma's room and got the book. He looked around, sighing.  _ 'I just hope they're really okay.' _ He thought. Leroy still haven't called him to inform about their progress with the fairy dust and with George trying to incriminate Ruby he had spent part of his night and morning searching for clues about Gus murdering.

When he came downstairs, he handed the book to Regina and she sat with Belle and Ruby at the couch. They started to quick read through the stories and when Regina was almost giving up, they came across with Cinderella's story.  _ 'Yes!'  _ She thought.  _ 'This is how we stop Cora.'  _ She exchanged a glance with both women, and they nodded, showing her, they're thinking the same. The squid ink was their answer. She couldn't wait to see Emma that night.

(…)

By the end of the day Regina, Belle and Ruby headed once again to the psychiatric hospital and secured Ruby in her cell from the previous night. In their own cell Regina settled a bigger mattress for her and Belle to share and they dived into the books they had found earlier in Storybrooke's underground trying to work with ways to guarantee that Cora wouldn't pass through the portal if Emma couldn't find the squid ink.

Like the night before, as soon as the full moon appeared in the night sky a loud snarl took them from their reading and Regina couldn't take her eyes from the soon-to-be wolf. Ruby was a beautiful woman but when she turned into a wolf, she became majestic. Not even Graham was such a beautiful wolf, Regina thought.

Once the wolf calmed down, they returned to their reading and like the night before, enjoyed the silent companion of each other until Regina finally falls asleep.

_ That flaming room. She hated this part but if this meant seeing Emma again, then she would put herself through it. The flames seemed bigger than the previous night. "Emma." Regina called trying to look around through the flames. "Emma!" _

_ Soon the blonde appeared at the other side of the flaming room. Her arms lifted before her face, as if trying to protect her from the flames. "Regina?" _

_ "Yes, dear." The brunette smiled despite the situation. Seeing Emma was a relief. That meant they manage to trick Cora for another day and were a step closer to coming back. The blonde smiled and she felt her heartbeat quickening. How she wanted to cross those damn flames and touch Emma. A loud cry made her spin around and she notice that the flames were stronger now. "We don't have much time, Emma." She took a step closer to the flames so the blonde could hear her. "There's a way to stop my mother. You need to find squid ink. Maybe your mother knows where to find. Or your other companions." _

_ "Ew." Emma grimaced at the  _ squid ink _. _

_ "Emma, now it's not the time to  _ ew _ anything." Regina sighed. She couldn't be more childish. How, in the world she had fallen for Emma, that was a mystery. _

_ "Why this world is so… ew." Emma laughed. "I don't know how you guys managed to live here." _

_ "Emma, focus!" Regina rolled her eyes. "Your mother must know where to find some squid ink since she used before to capture Rumple. Ask her!" _

_ Loud howls started echoing through the flaming room and Regina's eyes winded. _

_ "What's happening?" Emma yelled through the flames and howls. _

_ "I don't know, dear." Regina looked around trying to find the source. "But this can't be good." _

_ "Regina-" Emma cried and then a spiral smoke enveloped her. _

Regina woke up with a loud cry and Belle jumped at her side. "What happened?"

"I- I don't know." Regina whispered. She was worried sick, and she didn't have a way to help Emma. "We were in the flaming room then something started to howl and soon Emma disappeared."

"This is strange."

"Ouch!" Regina cried when a sharp pain rippled through her left arm. "What-?" Her eyes winded in horror upon seeing the large burn from her wrist to her forearm.

"This is-"

"A burning, yes." Regina pulled carefully at her shirt sleeve and looked at the damage. Slowly she made the burn disappear.

"What we do now?"

"We have to wait and pray for them to find that ink." Regina breathed. "I don't know what happened there so I will try to go back to sleep for if Emma manage to get back to the flaming room, we can try to put a plan to stop my mother."

Belle nodded and watched in silence while Regina drift back to sleep.

(…)

Emma was pulled from her sleep abruptly. "What the fuck?" She looked around franticly. "What's happening?"

"We are under attack." Snow yelled while positioning her bow.

As if to prove Snow three men appeared out of nowhere running in Emma's direction while other two were coming at her mother. "Fuck." She cursed and reached for her sword next to her improvised pillow.

She lifted her sword and attacked them the best she could but having practically zero knowledge about sword fight she couldn't do much. She twisted and turned trying no to be hurt but she didn't see the other guy coming from behind some trees. He knocked her down and before she could completely fall the other two got ger. They took advantage of the other women distraction with the fight and disappeared through the forest.

_ Emma looked around and despite being in the flaming room and this meaning that maybe she would get to see Regina again, she was scared. They were under attack and if she had fallen asleep this couldn't mean something good. "Regina?" _

_ "Emma?" The brunette soon appeared, and her face was marred with worry. "What's happening?" _

_ "We are under attack. I don't know how I got here again but-" _

_ "Who is attacking you?" _

_ "I don't know. They look like those mercenaries from old movies I like to watch." _

_ Regina sighed. For what Emma was saying they were indeed mercenaries and her heart clenched at the thought of Cora being the one who commanded the attack. "Emma, listen to me." She stepped closer to the blonde but keeping her distance through the flames. "If my mother is the responsible for this and she managed to have you her prisoner, you can't tell her about this room or that I'm helping you. Otherwise you won't get near the squid ink. My mother is Evil. A trick person. She knows how to push someone's buttons and how to manipulate them. If you think I'm evil or heartless, Cora is a million times worse." _

_ "I don't think you're evil…" Emma looked away. The truth is she didn't know what to think anymore. She was hurt she never thought she could be again, not after Henry's father, but Regina was different. She understood from where the woman was coming from and her behavior but didn't make things easier. "I think we should talk about this another time." _

_ "Of course." Regina breathed. "Just be careful, Emma. And don't let Cora get into your skin or things will get really bad." _

_ "Okay." Emma nodded slowly. "Say to Henry I love him and that I miss him." _

_ "I will." _

_ Then, just like that, Emma disappeared from the flaming room. _

(…)

When Emma woke up, she was in an underground cell. Her wrists are cuffed to the ground by large handcuffs with chains. "Great." She sighed. "Just fucking great!"

As soon as she sat straight the door opened and Cora entered carrying a tray of food and her stomach grumbled.

"I thought you might be hungry." Cora crouched down and set the tray in front of the blonde. "I hope you enjoy stew."

Emma looked at her in silence, taking in the woman before her. She resembled Regina in many ways but at the same time they were complete opposites. Cora was elegant and regal, just like Regina and they shared some features but was in their eyes that Emma notice the biggest difference between them. While Regina eyes were warm and soft and sometimes challenging and with a fierceness and fire, Cora's were cold like Siberia, or Iceland, Emma thought. "I'd rather starve to death."

"Plucky." Cora chuckled and it sent a shiver down Emma's spine. "I like that."

"I don't care for what you like or not. I'm not gonna tell you anything."

"Oh, I know, dear." Cora smiled and Emma thought of a snake. Beautiful and mortal. The nickname, while was welcome when said for Regina, send a shiver through Emma's spine and she felt as if her blood had become ice. "I don't expect you to say anything. You have nothing useful to say anyways. You weren't my target."

"Oh, right." Emma tried to straighten herself, look a little more confident and less like a scared little girl. Now she was finally beginning to understand what Regina had gone through in that woman's hands. Cora reminded her of some foster parents, and she hated it because it brought back memories she rather not to remember, especially in front of this woman. "The compass." She snorted. "Sad you lost it?"

"I suppose." She said mockingly. " But now at least you're useful to me in some way. I can exchange it for you and finally get to my ungrateful daughter."

"Nope." Emma smiled. "I'd rather die than let you get near Regina again."

"Oh, dear." Cora chuckled, and shook her head. "Well, this might be true." She shrugged. "Since you mother didn't bother for you in the first time and you were just a baby. I imagine she wants a child she can raise in her own way. To be a perfect princess and not a commoner. I imagine how disgusted Snow might have felt when the curse broke and she realized that her sweet little princess had become  _ this. _ "

Emma's jaw clenched and she blinked trying to fight her tears. This woman was a monster. "She did what she thought would be my best chance."

"Perhaps." Cora smiled. "But I intend on keep you here, far away from Regina. You make her weak."

"No, I make her stronger." Emma hissed. The tears welling up in her eyes.

"You foolish girl," Cora snarled. "Do you really believe Regina loves you? Do you really believe my daughter can love someone like you? I taught her better."

"You're right." Emma clenched her jaw and looked at the woman. "Regina is better than you. She is a universe better than you will ever be, your cold, heartless, dead monster."

Cora eyes winded in anger and she waved her hand, sending Emma flying through the cell. "You will regret this, silly girl."

(…)

Regina woke up and looked around. Despite being able to see Emma more and talk to her, this night was being exhausting and now she was worried sick with the blonde. Someone, probably Cora, had kidnapped her and Regina knew well of what her mother was capable of.

"Regina?" Belle called her softly. "Are you alright?"

"Yes." She sighed. "It's just- Emma was kidnapped."

"What? How?"

"I don't know." She shook her head. "When they were under attack… apparently my mother work."

"Is Emma alright?"

"I believe so." Regina reached for her arm to see how the burning was healing. "If this is really my mother work, she will keep Emma alive and try to trade her for whatever ways they have to come to Storybrooke."

"Do you think she will succeed?"

"Yes."

"I'm sorry, Regina."

"Is with Emma I'm worried." Regina stood up and started pacing the cell. "My mother is a monster. If people think I am evil, it's because they have no idea of who Cora Mills is and knowing Emma, she will not leave this encounter intact. And I'm not talking physically."

(…)

"Wake up. Wake up, sweetheart."

Emma groaned when a sharp pain rippled through her body. Someone was shaking her and while it was gentle, she could feel her body aching.

"Wake up. Wake up, luv."

Emma tried to talk but everything hurt.

"On your feet, princess." Hook pulled her from the ground and at that Emma finally jerked awake.

"No!" She tried to free herself, but it was in vain. "Let go of me."

"Don't worry, luv." He hit her handcuff with his hook, freeing one hand then the other. "Despite your betrayal at the beanstalk I won't let you to die."

"Cora sent you?"

"Cora doesn't know I'm here."

"Why are you freeing me?"

"Cora denied me my passage to Storybrooke, and my vengeance. And now I'm gonna deny her her wishes, starting with the compass."

"You'd risk your life to break in here all so you could thwart Cora?" Emma felt her liar detector ping, but her body was aching so hard she could barely focus. Something about this was wrong, very wrong but she couldn't put her finger on what.

"I don't like being double-crossed."

"Why are you doing this?"

"It hurts Cora and helps me." He shrugged. "Now go."

(…)

When Cora entered the cell later that night, she found the place empty. "What-" She walked through the cell, but Emma was nowhere to be found.

"Looking for someone?" Hook's voice startled her.

"Oh, don't tell me you were dumb enough to let her go."

"She was never gonna give you what you wanted anyway." Killian smiled and opened his arms.

"So, you freed her and stuck around for the petty satisfaction of seeing me suffer?"

"Oh, watching you suffer is a tempting motivation, but it wasn't that." He had a cocky smile that Cora wanted to rip from his face.

"Well, then you must have a death wish." She waved her hand and pinned him against the stone wall. "You know I have to kill you." She walked closer to him and removed his hook, pushing the fabric of his shirt to the side, exposing his chest to her. 

"You should try thanking me."

"Oh, really? Why is that?"

"Because I've brought you a gift. It's in the satchel."

Cora eyed the satchel suspiciously. "What is it?"

"Customarily, surprise is part of the fun of gift-giving. Open it."

Cora fished the satchel and opened. Inside there was a heart. "Is that-?" The heart vibrated with red and light, but not completely.

She smiled in a way that sent shivers through Killian's spine. He knew better than betray her. "Indeed, it is, and with it, you'll get everything you want."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As usual, let me know what you think.


End file.
